R A V A G E
by TwitchWalkerTexasRanger
Summary: Forks used to be the place Blaire Holcomb only visited on summer vacations, until she and her mom become its latest residents. Blaire takes the move in stride, spending time with her family and childhood friends like Bella Swan. But when weird things start happening in the sleepy town, Blaire wonders if Jasper Hale, local hottie and pro enigma, knows something she doesn't. [J/OC]
1. PREFACE

**PREFACE**

Some people say the future isn't set in stone, while some say it's inevitable.

I used to think the future wasn't set in stone, but as I lay here now – in utter agony, barely breathing, suffocating on my own blood, I begin to reevaluate.

I realize the things I've done, the choices I made that led me up to this point, no matter how small or inconsequential, were all just a series of steps and catalysts leading me up to this very moment.

Where I writhe on the floor in pain.

With the world around me closing in.

While my heart slows to a crawl.

And the blackness threatens to swallow me whole…

I realize my future was – _is_ – inevitable.

But I'm not sad.

I'm not afraid.

When you stare death in the face with nothing left to lose (except just one _final_ thing), your perspective shifts. You find a way to make peace with the end. I made peace with the fact that my life was going to end only seventeen years after I was born, and it makes me realize I only want two things…

To protect.

To _avenge_.

The epiphany makes me brave.

It makes me strong.

So I force myself to my knees, then to my feet. I'm going to die today, and I will do it standing.

I will do it fighting.


	2. PLAYLIST

Below are a list of songs that helped mold the telling of RAVAGE. I hope you enjoy these songs as much as I did!

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 **V**

 _Mornings Eleven_ ~ The Magic Numbers

 _ilomilo_ ~ Billie Eilish

 _All My Friends are Falling in Love_ ~ The Vaccines

 _Kingdom Come_ ~ The Civil Wars

 _my strange addiction_ ~ Billie Eilish

 _Do I Wanna Know_ ~ Arctic Monkeys

 _You Only Live Once_ ~ The Strokes

 _all good girls go to hell_ ~ Billie Eilish

 _Bite Hard_ ~ Franz Ferdinand

 _listen before i go_ ~ Billie Eilish

 **V**

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 **QUICK ANNOUNCEMENT:**

If you guys enjoy this story and my writing, I recently set up a ko-fi account (essentially an online tip jar) so you guys have the option to support me and the continued creation of RAVAGE. Please consider donating if you have extra change and want to help your local Texas Ranger out. I use this account to post excerpts of upcoming chapters, as well as to upload pictures of my favorite comments. So you should check it out just to see if your comment happens to be up there.

The link is ko-fi dot com slash twitchwalkertexasranger


	3. AN OLD SIGHT FOR SORE EYES

So, I've had the idea for writing a Jasper/OC story for a while now, but I wanted to try and take it in a different direction than most of the stories on here. I'm not saying that any of them are bad by any means, but I can't help but notice a lot of them are... similar. Again, it's not necessarily a bad thing (because I'm still reading them lol), but I've gotten inspired. I think I want to shake things up a little bit.

"How the hell does Twitch hope to achieve that?" Someone asks in the background.

Well, I guess that's for me to know and you to find out!

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 **1\. AN OLD SIGHT FOR SORE EYES**

Green. Everything was green. The color ranged in hues from light to dark, but the world around me was most definitely _green_. It was only enhanced by the gray sky and the almost-black asphalt on the road behind my uncle's house. It was soaked by a rain that always loomed on the horizon, but never broke.

Seeing so much of the one color usually brought me peace, but today I was a little weirded out.

I stared out at the forest in front of me, juggling a soccer ball between my sneaker-clad feet, focusing on nothing except the way the cold, wet air felt on my skin.

The atmosphere today was weird, but I couldn't exactly pinpoint _why_. I just knew I didn't like the way my skin prickled with every passing breeze, or the unease that made my adrenaline spike whenever I looked away from the evergreen expanse that was the forest looming just yards away from my new house.

Maybe it was just the jitters of moving somewhere new –

 _BANG!_

I jumped, accidentally toeing the ball a little harder than necessary. It sailed into the forest, right past the treeline with a gentle _whishing_ noise. I turned around.

My mom stood on the back porch, worrying over the screen door that flew open with the gentlest push. It'd swung hard and fast and slapped the back wall of the house. My mom looked up at me, gray eyes wide and her forehead creased in worry. She looked like that a lot these days.

"Sorry!" She exclaimed, her dusty blonde hair swinging in its wild waves as she pushed it over her shoulder. "We'll have to get this door fixed so it'll stop doing that. Did the ball go too far?"

"I don't think so," I said, turning back to the forest. I found myself frowning when I didn't immediately see the white and red ball stand out from all the green. It was like the forest just swallowed it up. "Or…"

I took a tentative step forward, but found myself stopping. I looked back at my mom. Her expression was wary, maybe even a little sad.

"How about I get you another one instead?" She suggested. "We have to go grocery shopping tomorrow anyway."

"That works," I said. I left the soccer ball behind as I turned to follow my mom back into the house, trying to ignore the way my instincts told me it was wrong to turn my back on the woods.

The house was as silent and eerie as it was outside. It was a stereotypical log cabin – an oversized man-cave. The back door of the house led into the kitchen which was laid with fading laminate flooring and adorned with dated honey oak cabinets. At least the appliances weren't too far gone. To my right was the dining room, holding a warped table with four chairs.

My mom banged through the cabinets and the tiny broom closet that was the pantry next to a fridge from the 1980s, a frown set on her features. "Yeah, your uncle left nothing in the way of actual food," she said.

I walked through the kitchen to the living room, now covered in worn original wooden floors and dated, baggy, mismatched furniture (probably picked up from a yard sale twenty years ago) that filled me with nostalgia. The TV and sound-system might have just been the most valuable things in the whole house. Instead of a baseball game playing on the screen, my mom had switched to the _Food Network_. The head of a five-point buck hung on the wall above and its glass eyes looked on disapprovingly. Unable to watch, I turned away and focused on the non-functioning fireplace. On its mantle were a few sparse knickknacks (a carving of a wolf made from Pacific driftwood, an American flag folded in a triangle in a box, the trophy from my first pee-wee soccer game) and a couple of pictures, including me through the years in soccer jerseys or school pictures. I focused on one from when I was five years old.

Geez, talk about a mess. When I was little my red hair was always a frizzy mess my mom tried to temper with braids and pigtails and I had the _biggest_ buck teeth. I rolled my eyes at my past self, relieved I'd grown into my overbite and realized hair straighteners were your friends. Five-year-old me sat on top of a lanky man's shoulders. His face was gaunt and covered with short, scratchy hairs, like he constantly forgot to shave. But his smile was wide and crooked and his eyes were bright. That was all that mattered to me.

This house used to be so warm and lifelike, much like Forks, Washington itself. Now it was empty, cold, with a slight crackle of apprehension that lingered too long in the air. Just like there always was when something bad happened in a place.

"He loved having you here," my mom said, surprising me a second time. I watched her round the kitchen and lean against the wall in the living room. She smiled sadly at me.

I looked back at the pictures. "I should've visited more often then," I admitted.

"Don't do that to yourself, Bee," my mom warned. "Your uncle knew how busy you were with school and sports –"

"Yeah," I said. "I just don't think it… adds up, I guess."

My mom walked further into the room, giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze before she passed me. She started to gather up all the loose papers spread out on the coffee table – final bills and paperwork – in a pile and took them into the kitchen.

She stopped short when my phone started ringing. We both _actually froze_.

The suddenly offending device sat on the coffee table next to the couch on its charger, making hornet-like buzzing noises as it vibrated against the surface. I glanced back at my mom, whose forehead creased a little further and her face became a shade paler, before I quickly walked toward it. My eyes narrowed at the home screen while the word **_DAD_** stood out in bold letters and pulsed with every vibration. I rejected the call, which made something in my chest drop a little lower.

My mom sighed. "You can't avoid him forever, honey."

"I can try," I said flatly.

Before my mom could say anymore, the front door burst open. A lanky man wearing a navy windbreaker and navy slacks strode through the threshold. His face was still gaunt, still covered in short gray and white whiskers, but his eyes were bright and merry under the bill of his black baseball cap. When our eyes met, we grinned at each other.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite ladies!" He exclaimed, but his smile quickly dropped when he saw my mom's face. "Uh… who died?" He asked.

"No one, Waylon," my mom said. "Unless you count your niece's relationship with her father. Blaire refuses to answer any of his calls. Can you tell her it won't do her any good to shut him out?"

"Hmm…" my uncle said, as if he were actually thinking about something to say. He stroked his stubby whiskers with one hand and looked at me out of the corner of his eye. Then he winked. "I don't know, Annie. I think Blaire's got a level head on her shoulders. The man may be her dad, but he's also a real son of a –"

" _Waylon_ ," my mom hissed.

" _See_?" I demanded. "Uncle Way doesn't see anything wrong with it. I told you I was on your side no matter what –"

"Sweetie, there are no sides," my mom said. Exasperation was _clearly_ clawing its way through her imploring tone, though.

"Oh, I think he made her choose sides with what he did, Anne," Waylon said. "I don't blame the kid for choosing _not_ to have a relationship with him right now. If the bastard can't understand that, he's got more issues than a divorce settlement –"

" _Waylon_." My mom already started messaging her temples. That was never a good sign. Waylon knew it too.

"But," he relented, looking back at me. "This is between your parents. Just because they're separating doesn't mean they love you any less. You're gonna have to talk to your dad eventually."

"Yeah, sure," I said, rolling my eyes. Internally, I was pumping my fists in victory. Waylon bought me time and he knew it too, if the mischievous glint in his eye was any indication.

"Anyway," he went on, "since you ladies are finished unpacking and woman-ing up my house, why don't we go out for a celebratory dinner? That'll be a great way to kick off my sister and niece's homecoming."

"Is that really necessary?" My mom asked.

"Yes," Waylon said. He had a wicked smile on his face. "Charlie's already on his way to get a booth at the Carver Café."

"Charlie _Swan_ is coming?" My mom asked. The alarm splaying across her face was a fresh look for her.

"Well, yeah," Waylon said. "He's bringing his daughter too. I thought it'd be great to bring the old gang together again – and reunite Bee-Squared."

My brows shot up. "Bella Swan lives in Forks too?" I asked, faintly remembering the girl I used to spend my summers with just before I turned ten. "I thought she lived with her mom or something."

"She just moved here," he replied. "Something about her mom and stepdad traveling? I don't know. Anyway, Charlie's ecstatic to have her, even if the old man doesn't show it. She's going to the same school as you – Forks High."

"I guess it'll be good to have a familiar face," I said. "I'm down."

"That's the spirit!" My uncle exclaimed.

"All right, fine," my mom said. "Just let me change."

I decided to forgo that process and remain in my cardboard-dust covered leggings and oversized purple University of Washington hoodie, but I did reach out and yank off Waylon's black baseball cap with the Forks PD emblem on the front to hide my unruly hair. My uncle gave me a warm smile as I threaded my ponytail through the hole in the back of the cap. I grinned back at him.

"You know, I'm real proud of the way you're handling things, kid," he said. "I know your mom tries not to show it, but your support means the world to her."

"Thanks, Uncle Way," I said.

After my mom changed in a pair of jeans, a T-shirt, and a suspicious layer of mascara and foundation, we walked out of the house and piled into my mom's sleek sedan. It was either that, the police cruiser, or my uncle's decrepit hatchback. While I waited for my mom to unlock the doors, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

I glanced around, wondering what was up with me today. Nothing was out of the ordinary. The sky was still overcast, the forest was still its lush shade of green, and everything was quiet. But was it too quiet? I realized I didn't hear any songbirds –

"Any day now, _Blaire-bear_!" My uncle said in an off-key sing-song voice. He and my mom were already sitting in the car.

I rolled my eyes at him and slid in the backseat, trying to brush off the weird vibe my new home was suddenly giving me.

 **V**

The Carver Café was more than an old local diner – it was an institution. It was a piece of Forks, Washington from the people that worked there to the people that ate there. It was a place for students to gather before and after football games, a place where everyone felt like family as soon as they walked in, and one of my family's favorite places to eat. Every summer up until I was ten, and then sparsely after that, we always made one trek to the local-iconic restaurant.

It looked the same as always with its late sixties vibe, smelled just the same with stale coffee and fry-batter lingering in the air, to most of its inhabitants sitting at the bar. My uncle burst into the diner like he owned the place, already receiving several "hellos" from many of the patrons. Apparently being the local deputy had its perks.

"Chief!" My uncle said as soon as he turned toward one of the biggest, circular booths built into the far wall of the restaurant. My eyes landed on a man in a similar uniform as my uncle, but he had a fuller head of chocolate brown hair and a thick brown mustache that covered his mouth, waving us down from the diner's entrance. A lean brunette girl sat next to him.

Both stood up as we approached the booth. "Uh, hey, Blaire," the man said first, reaching out to give me an awkward side-hug. I rolled with it and hugged him back. "You got taller."

"And you look exactly the same," I teased. "Hey, Mister Charlie. It's nice to see you again."

"Just Charlie," Charlie Swan, Chief of the Forks Police Department and co-star of some of my favorite Forks-centric childhood memories, corrected me. "It's nice to see you too. You remember Bella, right?"

I turned to the brunette girl in question. If I'd gotten taller, Bella could've probably been mistaken for a giant in Charlie's standards. She was at least a few inches taller than me with the lean figure of someone who probably could have mistaken for athletic – or maybe she was. Maybe she'd grown out of her klutziness. The past almost-seven years we hadn't seen each other also graced her with a beauty that was handsome, in the way some women were. She looked a lot like her dad, I realized. Her eyes were also a lot like his – gentle, open, and kind.

They reminded me of muddy sand castles on a gray beach, stomping through evergreen forests, balancing on logs as we attended our very own princess academies, and ice cream. There had been a _lot_ of ice cream.

I smiled at her tentatively. "It's been a while, but yeah, of course I do," I said. "Hey, Bells."

The girl, Isabella (I meant Bella, because "you know I _hate_ that name!") Swan, gave me a small smile. "Hey, Bee," she said.

" _Bella_?" My mom practically gawked. "Oh my goodness, you've gotten so _big_! How long has it been – _seven_ years –?"

"Something like that," Charlie said, turning my mom's attention back on him. "Hey, Annie."

My mom's head snapped right back to him and a small smile stretched across her face. For the first time in months, her expression appeared more relaxed. "Charlie," she said. "It's so good to see you again."

Before I knew what was happening, she went in and hugged Bella's dad. The two embraced for a second that seemed a little too long to me. Bella and I made eye-contact and stared incredulously at each other. What the hell was going on? She shrugged helplessly at me.

"So are we gonna get this show on the road, or what?" Waylon demanded as Charlie and my mom separated. "Because I'm starving."

With that, the five of as sat around the booth, clustered in close. Bella and I sat next to each other in the middle, closest to a window that opened up to the view of the diner's parking lot, with our parents on either sides of us, and Waylon next to Charlie. And then it was silent. Awkwardly so. The clanking and chatter of the diner felt a little overwhelming compared to the tense quiet surrounding our table.

"So…" Charlie began. "How is everything?"

"Fine!" My mom chirped a little overenthusiastically. The stress that often strained her voice was back. "Just fine!"

Way to go, mom. Charlie looked like he was already scrambling for ways to keep the conversation going. "You, uh… settling in all right?"

"Oh yes, just fine," my mom replied. She tried to find something to fiddle with on the table, only to realize our waitress hadn't even shown up yet. "How – How have you been?"

"Fine," Charlie replied.

"That's…" my mom started. She was avoiding his eyes now. "Good."

Cue another awkward silence. God, this was the weirdest dinner ever.

"So, Bella," my uncle drawled, effectively breaking the second silence. "Charlie said you made it through your first day at Forks High. How was it? For the love of God, please don't say _fine_."

I snorted at his bluntness. Bella started blushing – her signature move – and squirming. "Umm, it was all right," she said. "The, uh, people there seem nice."

Waylon looked at me imploringly. We both knew this was going downhill _fast_. "That's good," he said. "Blaire's gonna start there tomorrow. Maybe you can give her a ride or something, reunite good ol' Bee-Squared –"

"She – She doesn't have to," I said quickly. I looked at Bella. "Really, I don't want to put you out. Come on, Waylon, you can't put her on the spot like that –"

"No, no, it's cool," Bella said. "I want to. I think it'd be… fun. We could catch up."

Relief hit me like a ton of bricks. "It'll be nice to know a familiar face," I admitted. "Maybe we'll have classes together too."

"Yeah totally," Bella said. "I don't doubt it. Small town – and – and everything. If you want, I can give you a ride tomorrow."

"That'd be great, thanks," I said. "What's your phone number?"

I quickly typed Bella's number into my phone and sent her a text so she could receive mine. "I'll text you tomorrow when I pick you up," she said. "Does six-thirty work for you?"

"Absolutely," I said.

Then we all sat in another silence until the waitress finally came to our table. It was an act of pure mercy, I was sure. But when she collected our drink orders in a quick, businesslike manner and left, I realized there was still another round of torturous silence waiting for us.

 **V**

Dinner was a fairly quick affair because apparently reuniting people after seven years made conversation difficult. Who would have thought? Apparently my uncle didn't, since he and my mom went to high school with Charlie Swan and spent almost ten summers together after that, but it almost seemed like they were complete strangers. Gone was the easy banter I remembered so many summers ago. Instead, it'd been replaced with open-ended questions with one to two-worded responses, and silverware scraping against glass plates.

Waylon didn't bring it up on the drive home like I expected him to. My uncle was a pretty straightforward, no-bullshit kind of guy. For him to show any form of tact to my currently more-frazzled-than-normal mom was weird and it made the ride home was deathly silent.

We reached Waylon's house in a little under fifteen minutes and got out of the car. I followed the adults around the car to the front door, until I noticed one of my shoes was untied. I bent down to untie it.

Then I felt a wintery cold breeze against my back.

I shot up to my feet as the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. It felt unnatural against the current temperature around me. A small wave of panic flickered in the back of my mind and made my skin erupt in goosebumps. I spun around, finding nothing but the empty street beyond us, still damp from a light drizzle that followed us on the way home from the Carver Café.

What the hell…?

"Blaire!" My mom called. I whipped back around, finding her and Waylon already in the doorway of the house. They were watching me. "What are you looking at?"

"Uh…" I looked over my shoulder one more time, seeing nothing, and turned back around. "Nothing," I said.

I quickly walked up to the house, even though a strangely paranoid part of me wanted to _run_ , and pushed past the concerned adults. "Cold chill," I said by way of explanation. "Goodnight!"

I didn't stop walking until I could close the door to my new bedroom and shut the wispy white curtains that barely blocked out any of the silvery light from the moon.

I tried to chalk up my sudden burst of anxiety toward starting at a brand new school in the middle of the semester tomorrow, but I couldn't shake the eerie feeling settling into me even after I closed my eyes.

 **V**

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Hello again! Thank you for reading! How did you guys like the very first chapter of _RAVAGE_? I promise the next chapter will involve some Jasper! In the meantime, let me know what you think!


	4. CASE CLOSED

Step right up, ladies and gentlemen! Welcome back to another absolutely (hopefully) _riveting_ chapter of _RAVAGE_. Hope you enjoy the ride!

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 **2\. CASE CLOSED**

I woke up ten minutes before my alarm went off. I couldn't sleep any longer. It was like something in the back of my mind forced me into consciousness. When I finally resigned myself to being awake, I turned on my bedside lamp and faced the massive surprise that was my new bedroom's window.

The curtains were open.

And not just barely, either. They were pushed to the farthest ends of my window, letting in all the darkness from a pre-sunrise in Forks. It looked like a giant black void. It made my skin crawl. I just _stared_ at it, slowly coming into full consciousness, tying not to panic.

Maybe I was just going crazy and I didn't actually shut the curtains last night, or maybe the air blowing from the vent underneath the window made the curtains shift. I knew for a fact that the window was _locked_ so nobody could get inside even if they wanted to. I was safe. I was okay.

I watched the ends of the curtains flutter in the wake of the air blowing from the vent, deciding that must have been the culprit, even if a small part of myself didn't believe it. But there was no other explanation. With nothing else to go off of, I got up to start my day.

I stepped out of my room with a fresh change of clothes under my arm and hustled toward the bathroom. The house had two bathrooms in it, one was an en suite in Uncle Waylon's room (which was never to be entered under _any_ circumstances), and the other was at the end of the hallway from mine and my mom's rooms. When I opened the door to that bathroom, I jumped when I heard my mom's door open behind me.

"Blaire?" My mom asked. I turned around, somewhat surprised to see her dressed in black sweatpants and an oversized purple University of Washington hoodie (it was one of many I often stole from her). Her hair was up in a messy bun and her reading glasses were askew on her nose. I noticed a laptop under her arm. How long had she been awake?

"Hey, Mom," I said, jerking my head to her laptop. "What are you doing?"

"Oh," she said. "Emailing my class. I needed to give them their reading assignments for this week."

My mom was a history professor at the University of Washington. I almost forgot I wasn't the only one who moved in the middle of the semester.

"Is it going okay?" I asked.

She smiled at me. "It's fine, sweetheart. I'll have to drive over there in a couple of weeks for midterms, but the students will survive without me. Is Bella still taking you to school?"

I nodded. "Yeah, she said she wouldn't text me until she got here at six-thirty, though. I'm just going to get ready for school."

"Okay. Do you know what you want for breakfast?" She asked, catching me off guard. My mom didn't _do_ breakfast. She was usually gone most week mornings back home, so I was used to fending for myself. I frowned.

"You don't have to do this," I said.

Her face fell a little. "Do what, hon?"

I grimaced. "Um… this," I said, gesturing between us. "Just… you're acting different, I guess. You don't have to switch anything up if you're worried about me. I promise I'm fine. I'd tell you if I wasn't."

"I know," she said. "You've just given up so much to come here with me. You still don't have to, you know. I wouldn't be upset if you wanted to go back to Seattle – to go to your own school and live in your own house –"

"Forks is my home too," I said immediately. "I want to stay with you."

My mom smiled again, even though it seemed a little forced. I'd take it. "All right," she relented. "Hurry up and get dressed, then. We're still going to try and do breakfast."

We parted ways. I took a quick shower and changed into what I hoped was an impressive outfit for my first day at Forks High: a chunky gray sweater, ripped blue jeans, and white slip-on Vans. After drying and straightening my hair, I went back to my room to grab my backpack before walking into the dining room and kitchen. My mom drifted back and forth between the counters, making toast, drinking coffee, while my uncle filled a travel mug with coffee from the machine in the corner of the kitchen.

"Morning," I said, noticing my uncle was already in uniform. "I thought you didn't go to the station until eight-thirty."

Waylon perked up as he strode back out of the kitchen. "Charlie called," he explained as he set the mug on the counter. He picked up his belt from one of the chairs and latched it around his waist. I tried to ignore the gun now sitting on his hip. "He wants me to go to Mason County today. A security guard at the Grisham Mill was killed by a wild animal last week."

My brows shot up.

"What?" My mom asked, turning to face Waylon. "That happened at Grisham Mill?"

Waylon shrugged. "As you've always put it, we're in the middle of nowhere, Annie," he said. "It's bound to happen. Anyways, the county's been trying to hunt whatever killed the man down, but they still don't have anything. Charlie wants to see if the station can lend them a hand."

"You don't know what kind of animal yet?" My mom asked.

My uncle frowned. "Not as of yet. It's hard to tell. The coroner says it's the strangest kill he's seen. Could be a rabid mountain lion."

I could hardly believe his words. They were so bizarre. How could someone be killed by an _animal_? A rabid _mountain lion_? "Oh…" I finally managed. "Okay."

It wasn't a great response, but it was the best I had. Waylon noticed.

"Don't worry too much about it, kid," he said. "We're in a populated part of town. There might be deer or the occasional black bear, but they know to stay away from people. Grisham Mill is set pretty far back in the woods."

My phone buzzed with a text from Bella. _Here_ , it said. My stomach erupted into a whole new flock of butterflies.

"Okay. Bella's here," I said. "I've got to go."

"Go?" My mom echoed. "You haven't even had breakfast yet!"

"It's okay," I said. "To be honest, I'm not even that hungry. Nerves and all that."

My mom deflated, but nodded. "All right. Have a good day at school, sweetheart."

"Ditto, kiddo," Uncle Waylon said, reaching out to ruffle my hair. "Your mom and I went to school with most of your classmates' parents. Everyone's pretty friendly here. Like I said about the local wildlife, don't worry about it too much. Unless you come back with a boyfriend. Then you still shouldn't worry, but _he_ should."

I groaned. "Why are you like this?" I asked, reaching up to smooth down my hair. "Will it make you feel better if I told you I'm not even _remotely_ interested in dating right now? Yes? Great. Okay, I've got to go now, bye guys!"

I bounded out the front door and the cold greeted me first, reminding me of the strange gust of wind across my back last night. Maybe it really was just a cold chill. I also noticed I didn't have any weird, foreboding feelings about my surroundings today. Maybe I really did just need to adjust.

Maybe I was just going crazy.

Whatever it was (minus the crazy part) filled me with a little relief as I clopped down the steps of my uncle's front porch and made my way to the new car in the driveway – a faded red Ford pickup, circa late 1950s. My eyes almost popped open at the sight of the vintage masterpiece and I hustled toward it.

"Nice ride, Bells," I said as I practically fell into the front seat. I dropped my backpack at my feet and looked at her, watching the girl put the car in reverse and back out of the driveway. The engine gave a throaty growl as it accelerated down the street. "How'd you get it?"

"Do you remember Jacob Black?" Bella asked. I vaguely remembered a little boy with tan skin, but I couldn't quite form a picture in my head. "He lived on the La Push Reservation. We didn't really hang out with him a lot when we were in Forks, which used to make him so upset – But anyway, his dad sold it to my dad."

"Oh cool," I said. "I kind of remember his dad – Billy Black, right? He used to come over and play poker with your dad and Waylon on rainy days."

"Yeah, that's right, he mentioned that," Bella said. "He's, uh, in a wheelchair now, so he didn't really need the truck."

"That's sad," I said. "Hopefully I'll get to say hi to him soon. Geez, can you believe it? What are the chances of us moving up here at the same time?"

"Yeah, it's crazy," Bella said, but I could already tell her focus wasn't on me. I narrowed my eyes and formulated three guesses as to why. I went for the most obvious first.

"So…" I said. "What's the situation with the guys around here?"

Bella's face started turning red – a telltale sign I was on the right track. "Umm… everyone's pretty nice," she started off awkwardly. "I mean, maybe a little _overly_ friendly –"

"That's _all_ teenage boys, Bella," I said. "I meant is there anyone specific I should keep my eye on? Or… off?"

Her face turned a little redder. She glanced at me from the corner of her eye. "What do you mean?" She asked.

I smirked. "I was just curious about the guy that's on your mind right now," I said. "So I know he's taken, and everything."

"There's no – I don't have a – I mean, sorry, wait – _No_ – Blaire, it's not –" Bella spluttered.

My smirk turned into a smug grin. "Can't fool me, Bee," I said.

Bella scoffed. "You're impossible," she accused. "You haven't changed a bit."

"And neither have you," I said, "which is what makes this so easy. Now come on, you're not allowed to hold me in suspense any longer!"

"Fine," she sighed, "but it really _is_ nothing."

"I'll be the judge of that."

Bella sighed again. "It's just this one guy. His name is Edward Cullen. He's, like, a total jerk. Yesterday, on my first day of school, he just acted like I was the worst person on the face of the earth."

"What?" I asked, somewhat incredulous. If she was still the same kid I spent my summers with, Bella Swan was probably one of the nicest people I'd ever met. "What did he _do_?"

"He just gave me the worst look as soon as I walked in, like he just decided to hate me on sight or something – and _kept glaring_ at me through class! Then he left as soon as the bell rang like I was the devil... or _something_!" Bella exclaimed, tightening her hands on the steering wheel. "He even tried to switch classes to get away from me. I want to confront him about it today."

I nodded appreciatively at the story. "All right, Bells, good to see some of my confrontation actually rubbed off on you." When we were little, I was always the one instigating fights. Bella was either the victim of an unlucky bully or trying to protect me if the odds were stacked against me. "Should I start chanting _fight_ when you see him? That'll probably up your street cred at school."

Bella scoffed. "I don't want a fight. I just want to know what his problem is."

"Same difference," I said. "I'll back you up."

We pulled into the parking lot in front of an odd cluster of uniform brick buildings that made up Forks High School. The school was old, dated like the rest of the town for sure, but meticulously preserved. Bella's car was one of the first in the parking lot. We clambered out of the truck after she parked. There was a tenseness building in the air, the anticipation was mounting as we stood next to her car and waited.

"I'm sorry," Bella said suddenly. "I know this can't be fun. If you want, you can go to the office –"

"No way," I said. "This is fun. I want to do this with you. You know what they say – nothing brings two people together like hating the same person."

She smirked and fished a book out of her backpack. She cracked it open and started reading, leaned against the side of her truck while I dropped her tailgate and hoisted myself up on it, aimlessly scrolling through my phone, answering a few text messages from my friends back in Seattle. In the middle of one text, my phone started vibrating. The word **_DAD_** splayed across the screen. I rejected it.

I glanced over at Bella after feeling her eyes on me, or more like my phone, but she quickly looked away. I sighed.

"You can ask," I said. "Did Charlie say anything?"

"Just said that your dad was a low-life," she admitted. "But that was all. I think he's protective of you and your mom, after all this time and everything. I don't want to pry."

"It's okay," I said. "I don't mind if you know. Apparently my dad's been cheating on my mom for _years_ now – all different women – but we just found out a couple of months ago. I caught him with one of the other moms on my soccer team at my old school."

Bella gasped. "Oh my God, Blaire, I'm so sorry –"

"I don't care," I said. "It's his fault for breaking up my family. He's getting his in the divorce settlement. My mom and I are okay. She keeps telling me that living in Forks is only temporary, that I'll just finish out the semester while she finds a place back for us in Seattle, but I don't mind staying. I'm happier here."

"But what about soccer?" Bella asked. "Your mom said you were supposed to be co-captain on your team this year."

I shrugged. Cars started pulling into the parking lot now. I couldn't help but notice some of the students staring at us. "I'm pretty confident about my chances. If I could make it big at a Seattle private school, small-town Forks doesn't stand a chance. Besides, this will be awesome – Waylon can finally see me play a game."

"You're pretty optimistic," Bella said after a beat.

"I like Forks," I said. "I always have. This is where my family is – Seattle always felt a little too lonely for me, anyway. It's like there are so many people, you lose your place."

"I felt the same way about Phoenix," Bella admitted.

I smiled at her. "Maybe fate brought us back together for a reason, Bella Swan."

"Maybe, Blaire Holcomb," she echoed, but I saw her eyes were trained on a shiny silver Volvo pulling into the parking lot. That had to be _his_ car. I narrowed my eyes.

"Like I said, I've got your back," I said when I noticed Bella shut her book with trembling fingers. The Volvo swung into a parking spot a few rows down from us. I watched the car shut off and all four doors open almost at once. Then _they_ stepped out of the car.

Four people ranging in different shapes and hair color slid out of the car gracefully, as if they were in the middle of a photoshoot. They were all unnaturally pale (this coming from a Washington Sate native) and impossibly perfect. My eyes widened as they moved like a pack through the cars and past the students, looking like high school students, but at the same time not really. Something was _off_ with them, but every time I tried to pinpoint why, I couldn't figure it out.

"Wait, there are more?" I asked.

"Yeah," Bella said. "He has siblings. They're all adopted."

There were two boys and two girls. The girls were total opposites – one was blonde and had the curves and physique of a Scandinavian swimsuit model while the other one was shorter, pixie-like, with spiky black short hair. The two boys contrasted just as plainly against each other as the girls – the tallest one was beefy and tough looking with tight curly dark hair. He looked like a cage fighter. I decided immediately that couldn't be the Edward Cullen Bella detested (but probably, most likely, was _totally_ hung up on), mainly because she wouldn't dare try to face off with someone _that size_ (that seemed more like Blaire territory), and looked at the other one.

He was only a little shorter than the freaking _tank_ walking beside him and not as built, but still muscular. His honey blond hair hung on his head in long, curly tendrils that were purposefully mussed. If it wasn't for his pale skin, the boy looked like he belonged on the beach in the middle of a surfer-model campaign. His face was angular, statuesque, _perfect_ –

"Uh, Blaire?" Bella said. She gently rocked my arm to get my attention. I whipped around so fast I could have gotten whiplash. Blood roared through my ears as I tried my best to _chill out_. The guy was fine as hell, so what? It didn't matter. I was a huge supporter of the Girl Code and Bella saw him first. That was it, case closed.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" I asked, somewhat breathlessly. "Let's go give this Cullen guy a piece of your mind. He's the one who looks like the missing cast member of _Hawaii Five-O_ , right?"

"Wait, _Blaire_!" Bella called, her voice straggled as I hopped off the tailgate and shrugged away from her much slower hands.

I managed to take four steps toward the group of siblings. In that time, several things happened at once.

On the first step, the small girl with black hair gripped the blond boy's bicep and made the whole group freeze. Her eyes were wide and unseeing. Weird, but whatever.

As I lifted my foot for the second step, the remaining three clustered around the small girl and backed off just as fast. The blond boy's head snapped up and his shoulders squared back, alert, ready to… Ready to I didn't even know _what_.

My second step dropped.

His eyes met mine.

My heart stopped.

His expression was cold, closed off, calculating. We appraised each other from across the parking lot as I took my next step.

From my third step on the way to my fourth, Bella snatched one of my arms with her long fingers just as my leg extended and threatened to push me forward. "No, Blaire!" Bella said. "Stop! He isn't there! That's not _him_!"

"It's not?" I asked, just as my foot dropped.

Step four.

" _Bella_!" A male voice shouted a little too exuberantly a little ways behind us.

I finally tore my eyes away from the blond and looked back at Bella who was gripping my arm for dear life (I was beginning to lose circulation, here) with wide eyes. She was already shaking her head. "That's not him," she hissed. "There are _five_ of them. Edward isn't _here_."

"Oh…" I said. When I finally looked back at the group, I saw the dark haired guy and the blonde girl set a brisk pace toward the school. The blond guy slung his arm over the dark haired girl's shoulders and pulled her in close to his side, which somehow made her look even smaller.

He was also pulling her to the school, but the girl looked over her shoulder back at me. She threw me a huge megawatt smile that startled me with its unbridled kindness. Then, to make things even _more_ weird, she waved enthusiastically. My eyes widened. What the hell?

Like any _sane_ person would, I waved back.

 _That_ made her smile grow ten times brighter. The blond guy noticed our exchange, gave me one more speculative look, then leaned down to whisper something to the girl that made her shoulders drop.

I let out a breath I didn't even realize I was holding. Bella suddenly released my arm like I'd burnt her. "Sorry," she muttered. "Did I hurt you?"

"No," I said, watching the blond guy and black haired girl until they disappeared into one of the school buildings. "G – Good save."

" _Bella_!" The same male voice from before shouted again, this time closer. We both turned and I frowned as a boy with pale blond hair – dull compared to the other boy's hair – jog up to us. He looked like a typical jock, dressed head to toe in Nike and Under Armour. Thank God – an actual high school student I could relate to. I was beginning to worry all of the students were going to end up like those weirdly perfect people.

He was a little breathless by the time he reached us, smiling at Bella before turning to me. "What, don't tell me! Two new girls in _two days_?"

"Afraid so," I said, trying to regain my composure. I was somehow breathless too, simply from staring at a _guy_ across a _parking lot_. It was becoming safer for me to admit I was going crazy. I stuck out my hand in greeting. "My name's Blaire. My mom and I just moved here from Seattle."

The boy grinned and reached out to shake my hand. "Mike Newton," he said. "So… are you looking for someone to show you around?"

 **V**

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So... What do you think? Comments are appreciated!


	5. OCCURENCE

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 **3\. OCCURRENCE**

Luckily, the rest of my first morning at Forks High was a breeze. I got my schedule from the school's main ( _cough_ , only, _cough_ ) secretary, Miss Cope and found out Bella and I shared three classes together: English – first period, Spanish – fourth period, and gym – sixth.

I met her friends, Mike Newton and Eric Yorkie (English), Jessica Stanley (Spanish), and then we'd see Mike and Jessica again for gym.

In the meantime, I was left to muddle through my three other classes: trigonometry – second period, biology – third period, and honor's history – fifth period. So far, I'd made it through periods one through four fairly well.

As in, I didn't try to fight anyone else again.

Until lunch.

It was at lunch that I met the rest of Bella's acquaintances, like Angela Weber who I learned was in my trigonometry class and Tyler Crowley who was actually my biology partner.

It was also where I met my least favorite person in Forks High. Seriously, with a population a small as this high school's, it was pretty easy to weed out the tolerable people from the intolerable.

Lauren Mallory managed to make herself intolerable within the first five minutes of meeting her. Her pale eyes blatantly roved over me with casual disdain when Jessica introduced us. She didn't bother saying it was nice to meet me too when I _tried_ to give her the benefit of the doubt, instead flipping her pale blonde hair over one shoulder. Needless to say, I didn't try any harder to get on her good side. In fact, I think we both made a point to ignore each other for the rest of lunch.

Or so I'd thought.

"So _Blaire_ ," Jessica said, giving my name an extra syllable that didn't exist, after chewing on a floppy cafeteria French fry. "Where did you move from?"

"Seattle," I said. "Nothing exciting like Bella's trek from Phoenix."

"That's cool," Tyler said. "How do you like it here so far?"

Tyler wasn't a bad looking guy at all. He was tall, muscular, obviously a jock-type, which meant he was totally my type of guy. Even though he had nothing on the blond Cullen boy I saw this morning, Tyler was an approachable hot. He had innocent boy-next-door vibes that would make any white-picket-fence-mom swoon. He was nice and polite with an adorable goofy smile.

"Oh, I love it here," I said, smiling at him. "I used to come here to visit every summer until I was ten. In fact, mine and Bella's vacations used to overlap, so we kind of grew up together."

"That's nice," Angela said. Her voice was soft and friendly. "You guys are basically childhood friends."

"Yeah, our families used to call us Bee-Squared, right Bells?" I asked, smiling over at Bella. She wasn't even looking at me, though. In fact, she wasn't even involved in the conversation. I looked over her head to see what she was staring at.

It was a round cafeteria table set the furthest away from all the other tables. Four people I was begrudgingly becoming familiar with sat there in front of trays filled with food that had been pushed to the side. They weren't eating. Instead they were all leaning in close, talking to each other, all at once. Their expressions varied from grim to concerned. The one built like a tank and the two girls' focus was on the blond guy, who had an inexplicable look of frustration on his face. He was staring down at his tray, moving food around, his lips moving fast as he spoke too.

Unease prickled at the base of my neck. Despite being all the way across the room and not being able to hear a word they were saying, I felt like I was intruding on a moment. I gave Bella a hard nudge with my elbow, startling the girl. "Sorry," she said. "What's up?"

"I think you're getting a little obsessed," I said, making her face redden in embarrassment.

"What do you mean?" Mike asked, looking disappointed.

"We were going to confront Edward Cullen this morning," I said, smirking at the widening eyes of the students sitting around us. "Apparently he was giving Bells a hard time in biology yesterday."

"You were _not_!" Jessica gasped.

"Swear," I replied. "I was totally gonna go in for the kill too, until Bella stopped me and made me realize he wasn't even here today."

Everyone laughed, except for Lauren Mallory (surprise). Even Bella gave a small chuckle at that.

"You're crazy," Angela said, smiling. "Both of you are. Which one did you think was Edward?"

"Uh, Blondie over there," I said, making sure to convey little interest in the guy I'd been secretly rejoicing over since Bella said he wasn't Edward Cullen. "I knew there was no way Bella would even _think_ about confronting the Hulk's stepbrother over there, so he was the next logical choice. Unless one of the girls was named Edward –"

"Oh my _God_!" Tyler gasped through his laughter. "The Hulk's stepbrother? _Seriously_?"

I noticed Lauren Mallory's eyes narrowed dangerously when I turned to face the other boy. "I mean, yeah!" I said, trying to pretend I didn't notice her cutting glare. "What else would you call him? Dude's got serious gains. To be honest, I'm kind of jealous. I bet he's a real powerhouse on the football team –"

"Emmett Cullen doesn't play any sports," Jessica said, introducing me to the first member of the Cullen family. "None of them do. They kind of keep to themselves."

" _Yeah_ they do," Tyler snickered, making me frown.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.

"It means they don't date," Lauren piped up. "It's because they're all, like, _with_ each other."

Okay, that was kind of weird.

"Just Emmett and Rosalie," Angela said, quick to defend them. "And it's not like any of them are actually blood-related – except for Jasper and Rosalie."

"Is that the blond guy's name?" I asked, staring pointedly at my tray to keep from looking at him. Trying to act uninterested. Failing miserably. Lauren-freaking- _Mallory_ noticed first.

"Yeah, Jasper Hale. Don't get your hopes up, though," she said. "He's a senior and hasn't shown anyone _any_ interest for the past two years they've lived here. I'm pretty sure he and that other girl, Alice, are a thing. At least they're trying to keep it on the _DL_."

I pretended that wasn't as disappointing as it actually was. I shrugged. "Oh well, to each their own, right? As long as they're not hurting anyone, I could care less."

Lauren's face was screwed up in disgust, even after she looked away from the table at the far end of the cafeteria. "So why did you move all the way to Forks, anyway," she asked, effectively changing the conversation. "Usually people _here_ are trying to move _there_."

"My parents are getting divorced," I said, deciding I wouldn't lie about it. "My mom brought us here to settle things quietly and give us plenty of time to find a new place in Seattle. She says I'm only going to be here until the end of the semester."

"I'm so sorry," Angela said, genuine concern lacing her words. "That must be rough."

"It's really not that big of a deal," I said. "Marriages have a fifty-percent success rate these days. It happens. I haven't been back to Forks in _years_ , so I'm enjoying some quality time with my family. My uncle lives up here. His name is Waylon Forge? He's the Deputy at the Forks Police Department."

Lauren looked like she almost choked on her Dasani water bottle filled with school fountain water. She pulled the bottle away from her face with raised brows and a slightly haughty smile ghosting across her lips.

"Sorry, was there something funny about that?" I asked.

The girl's eyes widened. So did Jessica's. Apparently they weren't expecting me to fight back. Lauren regained her composure quickly and her gaze turned icy.

"Oh, nothing," Lauren said. "I was just remembering Waylon Forge's little stint as Santa Claus one year, that's all."

I narrowed my eyes.

If I were a good person, I wouldn't let it get to me. But I was definitely no saint. When we were kids, that had been Bella's job. I definitely wasn't going to let some Queen of Podunk Town get the best of me – _especially_ if she was trying to mess with my family. I would find a way to get my revenge, but for now –

"How… provincial," I finally said.

Lauren's nose screwed up. "What?" She asked.

"I guess I just find it funny," I said. "I thought the small-town, sheep-like mentality was some cliché TV shows and movies made up. Since that little _Santa Claus stint_ , my uncle hasn't had a single drop of alcohol, but it seems like people here only seem to remember that one mistake. It's like they forgot he was a war hero that now struggles with PTSD, that he's been able to turn that around to become the deputy of this town, or that he's always the one who helps the loggers protest peacefully, or that he's the one who always volunteers to go to the elementary schools on Career Day –"

"Hold on, hold on, not all of us are like that," Tyler said quickly. "I think Deputy Forge is awesome! He's probably the coolest police officer in Forks – uh, no offense, Bella."

"None taken," Bella shrugged.

Lauren didn't say anything. She didn't even apologize.

"So, Blaire," Tyler started, trying to change the subject again. "I saw you talking to Coach Davis earlier. Do you play any sports?"

"Soccer," I said. "But I also do cross country in the fall."

"Oh, Lauren's on the soccer team too!" Angela said. Her smile wilted under Lauren's cool look.

"Oh yeah?" I asked, feigning politeness, even as my blood boiled. "What position?"

The beautiful girl turned her nose up and picked at her lunch. "Forward," she said crisply. Of course she was. "You?"

"Striker."

Her eyes snapped up to mine and narrowed. I smirked.

"Well, try-outs don't start until the summer," Lauren said. "It's pretty competitive, but maybe you can make junior-varsity –"

"Oh no," I said. "I was talking to Coach Davis earlier because I was showing him some of my videos of training and gameplays from my old school. He wants me to start with the varsity team this week."

Lauren's eyes narrowed again. I shrugged at her.

"Like you said, it's pretty competitive," I mimicked. "But I'm also a pretty serious player. I want to make this my career."

"So you came to a small town to make that happen?" She snipped. "Doesn't seem like a smart move."

"I have the confidence and the skill to make it anywhere," I said. "Whether I pick up a scholarship from a school in Seattle or here, it won't make a difference."

"Well, if you need help training, let me know," Tyler offered, smirking between the two of us. I smiled at him.

"Definitely, thanks!" I beamed.

The bell rang before I had a chance to find out what Lauren's reaction would be to that. Everyone was up and throwing away their trays before scuttling to their next classes. I followed suit, waiting until Bella could push her way through the crowd to walk with me.

"You know, maybe you should take it easy with Tyler," she said. "Lauren has a crush on him."

"Well if that's the case, I definitely won't," I said. "Lauren shouldn't have said anything about my uncle. I can't let her get away with messing with me like that."

Bella didn't say anything. Instead she sighed in defeat.

"Besides," I went on, shrugging. "Tyler's kind of cute."

 _CRASH!_

We both jumped, some of the other students gasped. Bella and I were almost out of the cafeteria, but I turned around to see where the noise came from. One of the many garbage cans had toppled over on the other side of the room. Three of the Cullen siblings (minus Jasper) stood around the mess. The blonde girl rolled her eyes and walked away while the big dark haired boy reached down to pick up some of the contents that had spilled out. Alice Cullen reached down set the garbage can upright with one hand before the both of them started walking out of the cafeteria.

Our eyes met across the room. She shrugged and rolled her eyes, playing it off like the whole matter was silly.

"Uh-oh," Mike Newton said as he showed up in between Bella and I, slinging his arms over our shoulders. "It looks like you've been chosen. Better watch your back, Alice Cullen is creepy as hell."

 **V**

My next class was honor's history, which also happened to be my least favorite subject.

To make things _even better_ , at first glance, I realized I didn't recognize a single person in the classroom. At first, I was worried – did I totally just show up in the wrong classroom? I only just started recognizing some of the faces in my junior class, and none of these people really struck a familiar chord with me. I slowly made my way over to the teacher, an old man with thick white hair and even thicker glasses, with my slip in hand.

"Um… hi," I said quietly. The teacher perked up and snatched the students' slip out of my hand. "Am I in the right class?"

"Blaire Holcomb, honor's history. Yes, I have you on my roster," the man said in a grumbly voice. "Apparently you were in advanced placement at your last school, correct?"

"Uh… yes?"

The man _harrumphed_. "Since Forks High School doesn't have the same curriculum you came from, we had to make do with what we had. You will be in the senior's honor's history class. Sit wherever, I'll have to update the seating chart, anyway."

I slowly faced the classroom again and made my way toward the first empty desk I could find. It was in the middle of the row closest to the classroom door.

The class was, of course, boring, but all of my history classes were. Since my mom taught history for a living, I already knew pretty much every single detail about America, start to... well, where I was now. Apparently this class was still on World War I. I struggled to focus. The teacher, whose name I finally learned was Mister Apell, passed out worksheets we were required to work on for the rest of class. "Since you do not yet have your books, I'm sure Mister Hale won't mind sharing with you," Mister Apell said as he laid a worksheet flat on my desk.

 _As if._ The last thing I wanted to do was ask someone to look off of their stuff, especially when I had a feeling I didn't need it. I picked the paper up and scanned over the questions. They were simple enough.

I pulled out a pen and set to work, until I felt a light tap on my shoulder. When I turned around, my eyes widened.

The blond from the parking lot was sitting _right behind me_.

 **V**

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Omg more Jasper, yay! Are you guys excited?! I am!


	6. REJECTIONS

Hello and welcome back! As always, thank you guys so much for your follows, favorites, and reviews! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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 **4\. REJECTIONS**

The blond boy was even _more_ perfect up close. His features were sharp and angular and perfectly aligned. But while he looked youthful, his expression, his posture, even the very quirk of his mouth, somehow made him look older – more cynical than any high schooler had a right to be.

I especially saw it his eyes. They were dark brown under the fluorescent lights, but whenever they moved, I could have sworn I saw flecks of gold. They stared at me now with the same coldness from the parking lot, flickered over me like he was reading something on my skin. It looked like he was assessing, measuring…

Figuring it out. Not adding up.

The sudden disappointment on his face stung me worse than any of Lauren Mallory's insults. I quickly realized I didn't like it.

So I glared at him.

"Um… are you all right?" He finally asked, and holy crap his _voice_. It was low and gravelly, it rasped in all the right ways, complementing the strange lilt in his words – which was an accent. A _Southern_ accent.

Oh boy.

Pull it together, Blaire. I couldn't let some _boy_ fluster me, even if he was the most gorgeous one I'd ever seen in my _entire life_. He was still _staring_ at me! Just _staring_! I couldn't take that!

" _I'm_ fine," I said. "I was just waiting for _you_ to stop staring at me like that."

His eyes widened for a millisecond before they narrowed again.

In the same instant, my heart skipped a beat.

His eyes changed again, flickering over my face a second time, but this time it was different. There was a new look on his face I'd never seen on anyone before. It was only there for a split-second, but it set off alarms in the back of my mind.

Then the look was gone, making me wonder if anything was even there in the first place. Maybe I was just imagining things...?

The boy slowly straightened out, leaning backward like he was stretching. He was wearing a navy Henley shirt that clung to his well-muscled arms like a second skin, forcing me to notice every hardened line of his body as he moved. I couldn't help but wonder again why the Cullen boys didn't play sports, maybe I even secretly lamented the fact. If I liked this boy's body just _sitting_ in front of me, I couldn't imagine what it'd be like to see him move. "Like what?" He asked with a long exhale.

"Like I'm some kind of math problem," I said. "You're doing it right now."

He finally looked away. "Do you want to use my book or not? Mister Apell said you didn't have your own yet –"

"Is your last name Hale?" I blurted out.

His expression finally morphed to full-on confusion. "Yes," he said slowly, as if I were stupid. Well, he wouldn't be that far off the mark with the way I was currently acting.

 _His name was Jasper Hale._

"Oh…" I replied, scrambling. "I – I'm Blaire Holcomb."

He continued to stare at me, like he was _still_ trying to figure something out. "I know," he finally said.

"Okay… Well, I don't need it," I said curtly, turning back in my seat. "The book, I mean. My mom's a history professor, so I kind of already know this stuff like the back of my hand. But thank you for offering."

I scribbled down answers on the worksheet and tried to ignore the fact that I probably just blew off the _hottest guy in the_ _universe_. But there was just something about him, though. Something that made my stomach lurch and my ears buzz. It was a small voice that whispered _run_ , even though I only wanted to get closer.

"Okay then," I heard him mutter behind me.

And that was… strangely that.

 **V**

I could tell Bella was put out when Edward Cullen never even showed up for school. Being forced to play volleyball in gym only seemed to add insult to injury for her, so I tried not to make fun of her. Her shoulders slumped a little lower as she drove and her silence seemed a little more forlorn. I smirked at her from across my seat in the car. "Geez, you really have it bad for this guy, don't you?" I asked.

Bella startled. "I do _not_ ," she said. "I just wanted to know what his deal was."

"Well, maybe you'll get your chance tomorrow," I said. "But honestly, I wouldn't waste your time. There's just something… _off_ about that family."

"You see it too?" Bella asked.

"Um, yeah, I think everyone does," I said. "I bet you money that guy Emmett can bench over three hundred pounds, but he doesn't do sports? And the short girl – Alice? She looked like she stepped right out of _VOGUE_. Her outfit was _that_ on point today. Why isn't Jessica Stanley trying to get in her closet? Why isn't anyone friends with _any_ of them? It's because there's something weird about them, Bells, different –"

"Just because they're different doesn't make it a bad thing –" Bella defended.

"No, I get that," I said. "I mean, I totally agree with you, but… don't you get any bad vibes from them? There's just something vaguely… _culty_ about them."

" _Culty_?" Bella echoed incredulously.

"Trust me, I wish I had a better word for it," I said.

"I didn't realize you were into conspiracies," Bella said.

"I'm not!" I said. My phone started vibrating before I could defend myself any more. I glowered at the screen when I read the word **_DAD_**. Reject. "Hey, can I still borrow your copy of _Wuthering Heights_? I want to be as impressive as you in English."

"Sure," she said. "Do you just want to come over? I have to pick up some groceries from the Thriftway, but you can stay for dinner if you want."

"I would, but I think my mom already has plans for dinner. Apparently she's worried about me because I've adjusted _too well_." I put air quotes around the words "too well," making Bella crack a smile. "But I'd love to hang out for a while. I can have Waylon can pick me up since your house is on the way to his from the police station, that way you don't have to make any extra trips."

"Okay, cool," Bella said while I started texting my mom and uncle about my plans.

My mom's response was an immediate phone call. I frowned and answered it. " _Hey, honey_ ," my mom said. " _I completely forgot about dinner. The, um, lawyer called for a last minute meeting today so I had to drive out to Seattle. I can have Waylon order a pizza –_ "

"It's no big deal, Mom," I said. "Bella invited me over for dinner anyway –"

"I can pick up an extra steak for your mom and Waylon too," Bella offered, able to hear my mom's stressed voice carry through my phone speaker.

" _Oh, no, don't do anything for me, but thank you so much, sweetheart_ ," my mom said. " _I really appreciate you doing this. We can all do dinner at Waylon's tomorrow!_ "

"That works," Bella said and we smiled at each other.

" _All right, I love you guys_ ," my mom said. " _I've got to go, but I'll text you when I'm about to leave!_ "

"Love you too, I'll see you later," I said. After I hung up, I turned to Bella. "Are you sure about making me and Waylon dinner, Bells? You really don't have to –"

"I want to," Bella said. "It gives us a reason to hang out more."

"Well, I'll help," I said.

 **V**

Bella was a domestic kind of person. I quickly found this out as she handled the grocery shopping with the ease of a mom, apparently because she used to do it all the time in Phoenix. I found that a little sad. While I watched her inspect steaks and vegetables, she told me about the mom she moved away from – how she was kind of scatterbrained and immature, which made Bella grow up so fast. I got the feeling Charlie also didn't know much about his own daughter either, judging by the dinner we had at the café. They both seemed sort of distant. That had to be hard on her.

My family was the exact opposite – both sides of my family were very much intertwined with my life. Especially my mom's side. Since I was the only kid, my uncle treated me like one of his own and my grandparents (while they'd been alive) doted on me endlessly. I was grateful for all of the support I had.

After grocery shopping, we reached Bella's house, which looked the exact way I remembered it. It was smaller than my uncle's, white-washed, and beautiful against all of the green trees surrounding it in a rustic sort of way. I helped her unload groceries and prepare dinner by making a marinade for the steak – using a recipe I found on the internet – while she prepped potatoes.

Bella had to answer a couple of emails from her mom, who at least showed enough concern to email her, but she passed me her worn copy of _Wuthering Heights_ before doing so. I stretched out on her bed, flicking through the first pages while Bella sat at her computer.

Bella and I had an interesting dynamic. Ever since we were little kids, we just _clicked_. We'd been inseparable during our summer vacations. Despite the time and distance that had separated us for seven years, we sat in her room now with a companionable silence that I knew took some friends _years_ to build. Our relationship had always been like that, though – effortless.

"Do you remember the time you told me the only reason you liked coming to Washington was because of me?" I asked suddenly. "Because you actually hated it here? Because of all the cold and rain?"

She spun around in her office chair at her desk. "Kind of," she admitted. "It's been a while. Why?"

I shrugged. "I was just thinking I feel the same way now. This, just hanging out, is keeping me sane. I think I'd be going crazy if I didn't have anyone to keep my mind off of the stuff going on with my family."

"You're keeping me sane too," Bella said. "I only moved here so my mom could travel with my stepdad, Phil. I still don't really like it here, but I thought it'd be easier on everyone. I don't feel as alone here as I did on my first day. To be honest, when Charlie said you would be living here until the end of the semester, I was excited."

I smiled. "Me too."

After Bella answered her mom's emails, she turned her office chair so it faced me and propped her feet up on the edge of the bed after grabbing another book to read – _Romeo and Juliet_. I was beginning to get the vibe she was a classics buff.

The time passed easily. After a few hours, I was almost halfway through the book. We didn't really do anything else until we heard the front door open.

"Oh, the steak," Bella said, quickly dropping her book so she could bolt out of the room. I lurched up from my seat and followed her out.

"Bella?" Charlie called as we trumped down the stairs.

"Hey, Dad," Bella said as we both reached the bottom step. I watched the Chief hang up his belt and step out of his boots, then perked up when I saw my uncle's head poke through the front door.

"Bee-Squared!" He said as he walked inside. He also followed Charlie in taking off his belt and leaving it near the front door. He made a big show of appreciatively smelling the air. "Wow, who knew Charlie was getting so lucky, it smells great in here."

"It's just potatoes," Bella said shyly before we walked into the kitchen. I handled putting the steak in to broil while she pulled out the potatoes.

"You're too modest, kid," Waylon said. "Maybe you can teach Blaire a thing or two."

"Says the guy who lives on a steady diet of Carver Café," I teased. "Hey, isn't there a game on today?"

"This is why you're my favorite niece," Waylon said. "Come on, Charlie, let the women work while we do manly things like watch basketball."

I laughed loudly at that and continued to help Bella with dinner. As we chopped vegetables to make a salad and poured drinks, I would drift in and out of the living room so I could catch highlights and the latest score.

"I didn't know you liked watching sports," Bella said.

"Well, I'm definitely all about soccer," I said. "Baseball's a close second, but I can usually watch whatever's on."

Bella only gave me a hum to show she was listening, but her focus was on the steaks. When she pulled them out, I called Charlie and Waylon into the dining room to eat.

"Smells good, Bell," Charlie said as he took a seat at one end of the table.

"You're telling me," Waylon said as he sat next to him. His eyes widened when he saw the salad and potatoes already set in front of him. "Blaire, I wasn't kidding before when I said take notes."

"Yeah, yeah," I said as I sat across from him. "Thanks for having us over, guys."

"No problem," Bella said while Charlie grunted.

"So how was school today, Blaire?" Waylon asked as he cut into his steak. "You didn't embarrass Bella too much, did you?"

I laughed. "Hopefully nothing too scarring," I said as Bella and I smiled at each other. "It was good. I met a lot of her friends and they all seem really nice."

"That's good," Waylon said. "Did you get a chance to talk to Coach Davis?"

"He was my first stop this morning, after getting my schedule," I replied. "He said he wants me in on varsity practice this Thursday, so I need to start running drills – like _yesterday_. Do you know if mom got me a new ball today?"

Waylon frowned. "Didn't know you needed one. We can run over to Newton Outfitters later – I think they have some sporting goods."

"Newton?" I asked. "That's funny. We go to school with a kid named Mike Newton."

Charlie nodded. "His dad owns that store. He makes a good living off of all the backpackers who come through here. Nice kid – nice family."

"Do you know the Cullen family?" Bella asked.

"Doctor Cullen's family?" Charlie asked, as if we could somehow verify that. "Sure. Doctor Cullen's a great man. Why?"

"They… the kids…" Bella began. "They're a little different. They don't seem to fit in very well at school."

I frowned at the tenseness I saw in my uncle's shoulders when I looked over at him. A muscle in his jaw jumped as he worked through his salad.

"People in this town," Charlie muttered. "Doctor Cullen is a brilliant surgeon who could probably work in any hospital in the world, make ten times the salary he gets here. We're lucky to have him – lucky his wife wanted to live in a small town. He's an asset to the community, and all of those kids are well behaved and polite. I had my doubts when they first moved in, with all those adopted teenagers. I thought we might have some problems with them. But they're all very mature – I haven't had one speck of trouble from any of them. That's more than I can say for the children of some folks who've lived in this town for generations. And they stick together the way a family should – camping trips every other weekend… Just because they're newcomers, people have to talk."

My brows shot up. That was probably the most I'd ever heard Charlie talk in one sitting.

No one said anything for a minute.

"So... what I'm getting from this is that you want to take more camping trips as a family," I finally said. "Right?"

Charlie scoffed and reached out to ruffle my hair. Waylon smirked at me. "Don't be mad, Charlie," he said. "She gets it from me."

The rest of our dinner at the Swan residence lapsed without any more monologues from Charlie and plenty of quips between my uncle and I. After I helped Bella with the dishes and put her copy of _Wuthering Heights_ in my backpack, Waylon and I left with the promise that Bella would pick me up for school tomorrow.

My mom also texted me, letting me know she'd made it back from Seattle and got a new soccer ball while she was in the city. All felt right in the world, until I got in Waylon's police cruiser.

The atmosphere changed. It was strangely quiet, maybe even awkwardly so, which was unusual. My uncle and I didn't know these kinds of silences.

Once he was on the main road, Waylon finally spoke.

"Blaire, what did you think about the Cullens?" He asked.

Weird topic of conversation, but whatever. I shrugged. "Not much. Like Bella said, they kind of keep to themselves. But…"

"But?" He pressed.

I pursed my lips, debating on if I should tell him what I really thought, mainly because of how strongly Charlie opposed of any ill word about the family in the first place. But this was my uncle, he was the closest family member I had, besides my mom and dad. He wouldn't judge me.

"But I think there's something off about them," I finally said. "I can't exactly say what, though. I don't know, I know that sounds dumb – small-minded. I'm not trying to judge them or anything –"

"I know, I know," Waylon said. "Just… do me a favor, Blaire."

"Sure."

"Stay away from them."

 **V**

* * *

Uh... Uncle Waylon say what now? How is Blaire gonna handle this?!

So what did you guys think of her and Jasper's very first meeting? Was it everything you hoped for and more? Yes? No? Maybe so? Let me know with a comment!


	7. STRESSORS

WOW, GUYS! Thank you so much for giving _RAVAGE_ such an awesome reception so far! I really appreciate you reading this story, putting it on your alerts and favs, and most importantly COMMENTING! Seriously, they make my day!

* * *

 **5\. STRESSORS**

The next day was even slower than the last.

In the morning, Bella and I got to school early waited for the Volvo to arrive. Of course, Edward Cullen wasn't there… which made me wonder if the fifth Cullen was actually a figment of her imagination. When I asked Bella this, she retaliated by smacking my arm.

But Jasper Hale was _definitely_ there and he gave me one of his signature calculating looks that lasted at least five seconds. When Alice Cullen noticed our weird staring contest, she waved excitedly at both Bella and I. We waved back. When he saw the exchange, Jasper Hale actually cracked a small smirk.

I may or may not have confused my reason for living between soccer and that smirk for _two seconds_ , even if I didn't exactly know what it meant, but the world quickly realigned itself when the bell rang.

At lunch, I avoided looking at the Cullen's table at all costs and refocused my energy into getting to know Tyler Crowley. He was a smarter choice, he was more approachable, we had things in common, and it drove Lauren-freaking-Mallory _nuts_. It really was the small things in life that made a difference. When lunch ended, I felt like I officially cured myself of whatever weird hold Jasper Hale had on me.

Then, obviously, that all went to shit in fifth period.

Somehow, we made it to the door at the exact same time, and I almost crashed into him in my rush to get in the classroom. I took the opportunity to finally realize how _tall_ Jasper Hale actually was. He actually _towered_ over me. How tall was he? Six feet? More than six feet?

"Uh, sorry," I said, taking two small steps backward to let him into the room first.

I noticed he stood with the same alertness and poise of a soldier standing at attention before he took one sharp step backward. He wasn't even looking at me, instead staring off to the side with a pained look on his face. It was only there for a second, but I knew I wasn't imagining it when his features changed again. Again, even though the interaction only lasted less than a beat, it was enough to set off those familiar Cullen-centric warning bells and remember my uncle's warning.

 _Stay away from them._

"After you," Jasper Hale finally said.

 _Stay away from them._

I didn't bother trying to convince him to walk in first. I muddled through the rest of fifth period, hyper-aware of the boy sitting right behind me, obsessing over what his strange looks and mannerisms meant.

After school, Bella came over to my uncle's house. When I was finally able to pry her away from her classic books and email-writing to run drills with me, as my very first practice with the Forks High Spartans was the next day, I came across a surprise in the backyard.

My uncle had transformed his yard into a mini practice field. He'd mowed down the overgrown grass, outfitted it with little cones, a small goal net, and squares spray-painted on the ground to practice my footwork. Apparently he wasn't using the backyard for anything else and he had some free time during his lunch hour, so it wasn't a big deal for him, or so he wanted to make sure my mom told me.

I knew it was a lie.

So I pried Bella away from her classic books and email-writing to run drills with me. She was actually kind of helpful – as in she actually _increased_ my agility when she would awkwardly kick the ball in a random direction and I had to chase it. At least she was trying.

When Charlie and Uncle Waylon came home from the police station, Waylon sat outside with us and took over Bella's role as makeshift private instructor, claiming there was "too much sexual tension" between Charlie and my mom in the house for him to handle. Bella turned beet-red while I almost chucked my new soccer ball at his head.

He ran me through more drills. He was more helpful than Bella, since my uncle actually knew about the sport and saw a few of my practices when he visited Seattle in the past. They were both encouraging and they tried to give me constructive criticism, but they could tell I was getting frustrated. On certain timed drills, I realized I was moving a lot slower than usual. It terrified me. How was I supposed to make the Forks High team if I couldn't even complete basic drills on time? When my mom finally called us in for dinner, I couldn't taste my food. By the time I went to bed, I hardly slept.

But that was Wednesday.

Today was Thursday.

I bolted out of bed – not even caring that I was thirty minutes earlier than my alarm. I showered and dressed in black Adidas soccer pants, white slip-on Vans, and a black hoodie with a cowl hood. I didn't bother straightening my hair and threw it in a messy bun. When I looked in the mirror, I thought I looked like a badass in all black, so I hoped other people would get that message too. That way no one could tell I was freaking out on the inside. Lauren-freaking- _Mallory_ could eat her heart out.

After I scarfed down a bowl of cereal, I went outside to practice drills on the driveway, impatiently waiting for Bella to arrive. It was still dark outside, but the porch light from my uncle's house and the streetlamp across the street in front of me cast enough light for me to see.

I ignored the paranoid feeling suddenly eating up my insides, attributing it to my building nerves. When I started dribbling the ball down the driveway, I saw something lying on top of Uncle Waylon's mailbox. I gently toed my ball into the grass next to the driveway so it wouldn't roll away before walking toward it. The thing lying on top of the mailbox was a floppy piece of cotton and polyester. It was red and white and slippery-smooth to the touch.

It was my old soccer ball, the one I lost to the forest.

It was deflated. When I picked it up, trying to ignore the way my skin erupted into goosebumps and tingled with panic, I realized why. There was a giant hole in it, like someone or some _thing_ tore a chunk out of it.

What the hell –

 _Bop, bop, bop._

I whipped around.

My new soccer ball bounced down the driveway and rolled right past me into the empty street.

That was impossible. I knew for a _fact_ I'd pushed that ball far enough out of the way that it _wouldn't_ move. It couldn't have. Pure adrenaline roared through my veins as I stood, frozen, watching the ball move further away from me. I let out a short breath and squared my shoulders back before setting out to walk toward it. I stepped out into the middle of the street.

I felt so exposed, even though there wasn't a single car or person active in the neighborhood. I set a quick pace for my ball and reached down to pick it up.

That was when I felt that same wintry cold breeze from yesterday on my back that made me shudder. I shot up and spun around, only to feel a tiny sharp pain on my cheek. I reached up with my free hand and touched the side of my face. When I pulled back, my fingers were smeared with blood.

 _Run_.

I sprinted for the house, yanking the deflated ball along with me. I practically slammed the front door behind me and locked it.

I tried to talk myself down through my ragged breathing, reminded myself about what my uncle said. There were deer here, they were pretty used to people and they could hide _very_ well. Maybe I walked past one just standing in the front yard and I didn't even notice. It might have kicked my ball when it was trying to run away. And my cheek – I could have scratched it in my sleep, it was only just a graze. It stopped bleeding as soon as I ran into the house.

It was an elaborate story, but I forced myself to believe it. I sat on my uncle's couch, not moving, hardly breathing, until I got Bella's text letting me know she was ready to pick me up.

 **V**

While Bella and I waited for the Cullens to arrive, I practiced juggling my soccer ball on my feet, my knees, popping it off my chest, twisting my legs around the ball to make things harder, trying to balance the ball on my legs as I shuffled along the empty parking lot.

I tried my best to move on from the events that happened earlier that morning, deciding I'd talk to my uncle about it later, and shifted my focus solely on warming up for practice after school. That helped me push the troubling thoughts from my mind. There was something about soccer that helped do that, relax and shift my focus on one thing completely. Everything else disappeared when I played or ran through drills. It had been like that ever since my middle school coach told my mom I had the potential for something bigger than playing at an amateur level, so I'd given the sport everything I had to make that happen.

"I don't mind picking you up after practice," Bella said, distracted from reading by my repetitive kicking.

"Nah, you're good, it's going to be super boring," I said, smirking when I was able to talk and juggle the ball on my knees at the same time. "Uncle Waylon said he'd do it, since my mom is working out the settlement in Seattle and everything. She says it'll be any day now before everything is finalized."

"I get that, but doesn't that mean you have to go with your uncle to Mason County?" She asked. "Charlie said they still haven't gotten to the bottom of that animal attack."

"Yeah, but I don't mind," I said. "Actually, I'm kind of excited. I've never seen Waylon work before so it'll be fun."

"I think you and I have different definitions of fun," she grumbled, sticking her face back in her book.

"I could've told you that one a while ago, Bell," I replied. "Guy-stalking has never really been my forte."

Bella scoffed at me. "Just guy-stealing."

"Hey, I already told you, whatever's going on between Tyler and I has pretty much fizzled out into nothingness," I said. "I think he's only giving me attention now because he finally realized it makes Lauren jealous. Phase one practically runs itself now."

" _Phase one_?"

"Yes," I said as more cars started pulling into the parking lot. "Phase two is owning her ass on the field today. Phase three is taking all of her friends when we go to the beach. Phase four is burning the school down in retribution for my hair yesterday – see if this town's precious rain can soak through _that_."

Of course, she wasn't listening to me. Bella was staring at the Volvo pulling into its parking spot. I rolled my eyes and turned around, pointedly ignoring the car so I could go back to juggling the ball. I wasn't going to let some _boy_ throw me off today.

"Ooh, _girl_!" Tyler shouted from across the parking lot. Mike Newton was on his heels, offering me an appreciative whistle as they approached us. "You're looking _fine_ in those soccer pants!"

"Trust me, I know!" I laughed as I bounced the ball off my chest and let it fall to my feet. "Doesn't it make you wish you played too?"

"Absolutely," he assured me as he stood in front of me, watching the ball switch between my feet. "Maybe I'll try out this summer."

Mike sidled up to Bella's side, still _desperately_ trying to make a connection with her, even though everyone knew it was a lost cause. It was pretty simple: Bella was smart and Mike was not. Bella liked reading and discussing classic literature while I doubted Mike even knew how to spell _Shakespeare_. I smirked at Bella as she tried to divide her attention equally between him and the Cullen's car.

"You should," I told Tyler as I turned back to him. "I bet it'd make all the girls go crazy if you played two sports."

"I'll have to think about it, basketball is my main focus right now, but I kind of like the idea. Especially now that I know you soccer girls make art out of juggling _balls_ –"

" _Tyler Crowley_!" I gasped, almost losing control of the ball. I burst into laughter. "You know what? Let's see how well you can handle _your_ _balls_ –"

I kicked the ball at him, forcing Tyler to drop his backpack so he could receive it. His reflexes were quick, I had to give him that. The ball bounced off of his chest well enough, but as soon as it hit his feet, it was all over. He kicked it too hard, making the ball fly a few car-lengths down the parking lot.

"Oh shit!" Tyler cursed.

We all whipped around, following the trajectory of the ball as it sailed across the cars and students. To my utter horror, I saw it fly straight for the Cullens.

I sprinted for it.

"Hey, _watch out_!" I shouted.

The Cullens turned around almost at the same time, but it was Emmett Cullen that intercepted the ball. He caught it with ease as the ball slowed to a gentle bounce and landed right in his waiting hands.

"Thanks, man," I said as I jogged up to them. "Sorry about that – Now I know what happens when you pass a soccer ball to a basketball player."

"It's all right," Emmett said with an easy grin. He tossed me the ball kind of hard, making me catch it with both hands. My palms stung when I made contact.

It was then that I realized I was standing in front of the four Cullen siblings, who were all staring at me with a little too much intensity. It was unnerving, it made me feel like a fly trapped under a glass.

"Well I'm Blaire," I said. "The other new student at Forks High."

"We're already well aware," the blonde girl, Rosalie, finally spoke. Her voice was smooth and rich, but it held a brassy note of sarcasm in it. "You can't get away with much in this school without _someone_ noticing."

The way she said the last part made me question if there was supposed to be some kind of double-meaning there. I pretended there wasn't. "That… sounds about right," I finally said.

"I'm Alice Cullen," the smallest girl, the one that seemed the most welcoming in the group, finally spoke. Her voice was light and airy, but she spoke with enough confidence that forced people to pay attention to her. I looked over at her, already bracing myself for the cheerful smile on her face that lit up her dark eyes.

Like every day this week I'd seen her, she was dressed to the nines. Today she wore a black halter top and high-waisted jeans with a long, red cardigan draped elegantly over her tiny shoulders. I wondered if she was cold. She finished the outfit off with chunky black boots, looking like a rogue punk rock princess in the thick of a terribly drab backwoods high school. "It's nice to meet you!"

"It's nice to meet you too," I replied, trying to reciprocate her level of friendliness. It was hard to be that cheery, though. "I like your shoes."

It was like I flipped some sort of invisible switch inside Alice Cullen, because her smile went from bright to downright _radiant_. " _Really_? Thank you so much! You can borrow them if you want, we're the same size –"

I suddenly noticed Jasper Hale standing behind her, looking rigid and uncomfortable throughout the whole encounter, as he dropped his arm on the roof of the Volvo with an awkwardly loud _thud_.

"At least we _look_ like the same shoe size," Alice quickly amended, dialing down her tone a few notches.

Unfortunately, it made me realize why Mike Newton and some of my other new classmates thought she was weird. But I felt for her, I really did. Alice Cullen was probably just eager to make new friends outside of her tightly-knit siblings. Even though I was an only child (or maybe it was _because_ I was an only child), I understood her desire to reach out and make more connections with people.

So, despite my uncle's wishes and my own unease that stemmed from being in close proximity to the family, I did what any half-decent person would do.

I smiled. "You think so?" I asked. "I'm a size six."

A more genuine smile graced Alice's features. "Me too," she said.

"Really? That's awesome! You'll have to tell me where you go shopping, too," I went on. "I really like a lot of your outfits."

"Definitely!" She chirped. "I can make you a list, if you want –"

"What happened to your face?"

What the hell? I couldn't even school my expression fast enough when I looked up at Jasper. His gaze was intent on my face, just as it always seemed to be. "Uh... nothing?" I said, self-consciously reaching up to touch the graze running across my cheek. "I think I scratched it on accident or something."

When I heard the bell ring in the background, I realized I still needed to get my cleats and practice clothes in my gym locker so I didn't have to car them around the school all day. "Anyway," I said. "A list would be awesome, Alice. I've got to run, but I'll see you guys later. It was nice to meet you."

"Bye, Blaire!" Alice called as I turned my back and made my way back to Tyler, Mike, and Bella, who were still standing next to her car, eyes wide.

"What?" I asked as I finally approached them. I reached onto the bed of Bella's truck to yank out my backpack and sling it over my shoulder. " _What_ is the matter with you guys? Why does everyone at this damn school just _stare_?"

 **V**

Periods one through four were _nightmarishly_ slow. I could feel my anxiety shooting through the roof as each class brought me closer to the end of the school day. Lunch was horrendous, as I had to sit across from Lauren- _freaking_ - _Mallory_ , who essentially took it upon herself to give me the shittiest pep-talk in the history of the universe.

"I wouldn't stress so much," she'd said. "Even though you've been out of practice for a couple of weeks, I'm sure Coach Davis will give you a chance."

Her words were the very root of my anxiety. She knew it too.

By the time I made it to fifth period, my heartrate was all over the place and it was getting harder to breathe. I didn't know if it was because all of the anxiety from my parents' divorce, the move, and the weird things that'd been happening at Waylon's house were only just now starting to hit me like an ugly emotional cocktail that'd been kicked off by my shitty drill times, but I felt out of control.

The walls of the tiny classroom felt like they were closing in on me and my head pounded and started to ache. I slumped over my desk, trying to message my temples, bouncing my right leg fast, making my desk shake. If anyone around me had a problem with it, I didn't notice.

I almost jumped out of my seat when a large, cold hand gripped my shoulder from behind. I whipped around.

Jasper Hale was _glaring_ at me. His eyes were so dark they almost looked black under the fluorescent lights. Wait, weren't they brown the last time I looked at them? I couldn't really remember, mainly because I was so nervous and the intensity of his stare wasn't really helping anything.

" _What_ is the matter with you?" He demanded.

 **V**

* * *

Oh look, a wild cliff-hanger!

Honestly, though, how else am I going to keep you guys coming back?!

So what the heck do you think is going on at Waylon's house? Maybe Blaire really is going crazy, but I don't buy it. Did you guys like that scene? Was it creepy? I'm debating on whether or not to start writing horror and I want to know what you think!


	8. TRYOUTS

OH MY GOSH YOU GUYS! These comments are seriously AMAZING! Thank you so much for reaching out and letting me know how you're liking the story so far! Seriously, my day is made! Because you guys are so great, here's a new chapter!

* * *

 **6\. TRYOUTS**

What was the matter with _me_? I almost demanded to know what the matter was with _him_ , but I realized I didn't really care. If he wanted to know so damn much, Jasper Hale was going to find out.

"I'm trying out for the varsity soccer team today," I said. "It's a big deal, since the coach is giving me a chance right in the middle of the season. But I've been out of practice for the past couple of weeks, which is _seriously_ detrimental to my game, and while everyone's been helping me the best they can, I haven't dealt with an actual coach or had any classes with my private instructor in ages – because that's all back in Seattle. So I'm freaking out because I'm only going to have this one chance to make it, and I _really_ want to be the one that brings a championship to this school so I can have that on my resume, to prove I'm always ready to play anywhere any time, so that it'll give college scouts a really good impression of me, so I can get into the minor leagues, then become pro, then maybe the Olympics –"

"Please stop," he said. His eyes were screwed shut like he was in pain again, just like my second day of school.

I glared at him, but I took his interruption as a moment for me to relax. If dealing with my stress internally was an issue, talking about it made them so much worse. I let out a small, shaky breath. "Well you _asked_ ," I said.

"I know," he said tightly. After a second, he also let out a breath, though it was much longer than mine. Then he looked back at me. "Do me a favor," he said.

"What? No," I said immediately. "Why?"

"Because you're giving me a headache," he admitted. "Just… count to five."

I arched a brow at him. "Uh… no."

Jasper Hale's eyes met mine then. He leaned forward until his face was only inches away, his expression dangerous and dark. It rattled something within me, making me confused and worried, but I found it impossible to look away.

" _Please_ ," he said. He lowered his voice, making it softer, velvety, inviting… "It'll only take a minute. I promise you'll feel better after."

My fingers curled into the back of my chair as I continued to look at him. I took a deep breath, then exhaled. "Fine," I whispered.

"One," Jasper began.

I immediately felt some of the tension leave my shoulders. The pounding in my head subsided by a fraction. My fingers tensed and constricted the plastic of my chair.

"Two," he murmured. I was too lost in his dark gaze to realize the pounding in my head disappeared.

"Three."

I could _feel_ the adrenaline coursing through my veins, adrenaline that had been in my system since this morning, slowly melt into gentle tingles of excitement.

"Four…"

I let out another breath, longer than the last two as the fear that had settled in the pit of my stomach shrunk until it disappeared.

"Five."

I didn't even realize my eyes were closed until I opened them again. I found myself looking at Jasper Hale again, watching him settle back in his chair with the ghost of a self-satisfied smirk on his face. I narrowed my eyes, but couldn't exactly bring myself to be mad at him.

"Thanks," I said. "That was… exactly what I needed."

The smirk disappeared. "I know."

"What did you do?" I demanded. "How did you know that would work? Are you, like, a Jedi or –"

"Miss Holcomb," the history teacher, Mister Apell, said, effectively startling me. I whipped back around in my seat. "Perhaps you could answer the question."

Students snickered around me as blood rushed through my ears. I glared at my hands clasped together on my desk and stammered through some bullshit reason the Russians won a certain battle.

I spent the rest of class silent, wondering how all of my nerves and anxiety disappeared just by counting to _five_.

 **V**

After changing into my shorts, cleats, and a loose T-shirt, I stepped out of the girls' locker room and onto the deep emerald grass of the soccer field. The grass was still wet from the morning dew. Chilly air nipped at my skin, but I hardly noticed. I was _home_. Whatever unbalance I experienced all day was suddenly even _more_ rightened than it had been in fifth period when I stepped foot on the soccer field. I was sure of myself again. I was ready.

"Holcomb!"

I perked up at the sound of my name and jogged toward Coach Davis, a short brunette man. He was waving me over, standing in front of a group of girls around my age and older who were working on their stretches. I caught Lauren-freaking-Mallory looking at me like she couldn't believe I was actually on the same field as her. It made me smirk as I reached Coach Davis's side. I reached out to shake his hand. "Thank you again for giving me this opportunity, Coach," I said.

"Thank me by running your drills as well as you did in those videos," he said before turning back to the team. "All right ladies, huddle up! This is Blaire Holcomb, she started at Forks High earlier this week and used to play varsity at her old school. She's going to warm up with you guys and officially try out for the team. Make sure you give her a warm welcome."

A couple of girls offered hellos and sparse claps. Overall, it was underwhelming, but fine. I expected the lukewarm reception and used it as motivation to truly earn my place on the team. The task suddenly didn't feel so daunting anymore. Maybe it really was just being on the field again, maybe it was easing into my familiar stretches, or maybe Jasper Hale – a guy I didn't know from Adam – had somehow been able to talk me through an almost-emotional meltdown, but I felt clarity. I felt ready.

Practice started like any other, whether I was playing at a club or at school. We worked on sprints and drills. I tried to balance myself among the other girls. They weren't as good as the teams I played with in Seattle, so it was easy to outshine them in drills, but I made sure to prove I was a team player in all the practice plays.

In between drills, I was able to properly introduce myself to a lot of the girls on the team. After watching me play, they were more receptive to talking to me. I learned I shared a few classes with some of the juniors, and two were in my senior honor's class including the team captain and goalie, Marissa Alverez. She helped Coach Davis supervise practice, but I noticed she had her eye on me whenever we went through drills and sprints.

"Holcomb!" She barked, forcing me to stop short in the middle of running through a set of front triangles. "Spar with me."

I wordlessly obeyed the command and followed her further out into the field, ignoring Lauren Mallory's envious fishy eyes.

"Half-field," Marissa instructed as I dribbled my ball toward her and passed it. "You've got one chance to score on me."

I nodded, loosening my muscles. I took a deep breath to shut out the stares of the rest of the varsity team on us. The jitters that followed me all day were gone, thanks to whatever a certain blond boy did in fifth period, and I could focus solely on the challenge. Marissa Alverez kicked the ball toward me.

I launched into action.

I intercepted the ball and shot forward. Marissa came at me head-on, which I thought was a pretty bull-headed but confident move. Maybe she was a straightforward player who relied on confidence to take the ball over more implementing technical moves. I twisted around her, guiding the ball with my right foot before shoving it backwards. Marissa was quick on her feet, wheeling around and trying to strike out to steal the ball from me. It was another pretty obvious move. I was able to step backward and keep the ball close with backwards triangles. I frowned at her. Why was this so simple?

She moved to my right side and swung out in an attempt to clip the ball out of my feet again. I spun left and pulled the ball backwards, spun right when I saw her coming, and found my opening. I shot down the field toward the open goal. The goal was too easy.

I turned, waiting for the other girl to catch up to me. "You're fast," she said.

"I'm a soccer player. I should be," I said. "Were you taking it easy on me?"

She shrugged, pushing her long raven hair over her shoulder. "I was trying to gauge you," she said.

"You set the bar way too low," I said.

Her brows rose. "Are you trying to get a rematch?"

"Well I definitely didn't come here to get babysat," I shot back.

Marissa smirked. "Next practice, then," she said. "Welcome to the Spartans."

 **V**

After I showered and changed, I got a text from Waylon letting me know he was parked in front of the school. I said goodbye to my new teammates and hustled over to the patrol car.

"How'd it go?" He asked as soon as I practically fell inside.

"Not great," I admitted as I dropped my backpack in between my feet.

Waylon frowned at me as he put the car in drive. "What do you mean? Was it your no touch steps? I thought we fixed that problem yesterday. Was it Coach Davis? You know, I never liked that guy –"

I yanked out a brand new navy jersey and held it out for him. "It went _perfectly_!" I shouted, effectively startling him and making the car swerve a little to the left.

"Son of a bitch," Waylon sighed in relief when he pulled the car straight again. Then he reached across the center console to ruffle my hair while I laughed. "Do _not_ scare your uncle like that! I could've had a heart attack! You need to let your mom know too, she's been calling me all day waiting for the news."

"On it," I replied, already having my phone in my hands. My mom answered on the third ring.

" _How did it go?_ " She demanded.

"I made it!"

My mom cheered for me on the other end of the line. I yanked my phone away from my ear and put it on speaker. " _That's fantastic, honey! I'm so proud of you! Did you get your uniform yet?_ "

"Coach Davis said I probably won't get a jersey with my name on it since it's so late in the season," I said. "But he did give me a blank one with a number, so it works."

" _What number is it?_ " My mom asked.

"Uh… twelve, I think?" I said. "To be honest, I don't really care about the number, just as long as I get to play."

" _But I thought numbers were important_ ," my mom said. " _Isn't it bad luck if you don't get your own jersey?_ "

I scoffed. "Only if you believe in that. I don't buy into all that superstition and stuff."

I heard another voice drift on the line. I heard my mom's voice next and they were having a conversation. The noises were so faint that I couldn't make out what they were saying.

"Um, Mom?" I asked. "Mom, can you hear me? _Hello_ –"

" _Sorry, Blaire_ ," my mom said, her voice suddenly coming in loud and clear. " _That was your father. He wants to talk to you._ "

I scrunched up my nose. "No thanks."

" _He's been trying to reach you for the past two weeks and you haven't answered any of his calls. Just give him a chance. Please. I'm trying to make this whole process as easy as possible for all of us. At least just say hello._ "

Waylon and I met eyes for a split-second when he stopped at a red light. He shrugged at me. I rolled my eyes. "Fine," I said.

I heard shuffling noises across the speaker while trees and buildings whipped past us on the highway. Finally, the noises settled and I heard someone else's breath catch.

" _Blaire?_ " My dad asked on the other line.

Fiery anger blazed through my veins at one simple word. My fingers tightened on the phone. I wanted to scream, curse, and cry – anything to let him know that he'd fucked up. _Royally_. I wanted to know why he thought I should answer his calls, why I should even give him the time of day. He ruined my life. He tore my family apart. He made my mom more upset than I'd ever seen her in my entire life. I wanted to know if he cared. I wanted to tell him that just because my mom was trying to make this whole process _easy_ didn't mean I was. Instead, all that came out was:

"Hi."

" _Honey, hi_ ," my dad started out, sounding more relieved than he deserved. " _So you made –_ "

Call ended.

I dropped my phone back into my backpack and leaned against the seat with a loud sigh. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Waylon glancing over at me. "Go ahead and say it," I said. "Just get it out of the way."

"There's nothing to say, kid." Waylon said. "I don't try to keep secrets from you – I never have and I never will. You know I always had a bad feeling about your dad from the minute I met him, but if your mom never met him, I wouldn't have gotten you. Like I said the other day, I think you've got a level head on your shoulders. I believe you're the only one who's gonna be able to decide when you want to forgive your dad."

My shoulders sagged in relief. "Thanks, Uncle Way."

 **V**

"You know, after seeing you in action, I think I might want to be a cop," I said as Waylon drove us back to Forks.

We spent four grueling hours at the Mason County police department, but I had to admit I loved every second of it. The officers greeted both Waylon and I like members of some huge family, gave us coffee as soon as we sat down at one of the officer's desks, laughed and joked with me as Waylon asked and answered questions. It also gave me the chance to see a different side to my fun-loving uncle.

It turned out Waylon Forge was a very smart man and an incredibly capable police officer. He took command of a room and was able to handle everyone's concerns and help delegate work. He knew his own police department in Forks like the back of his hand, including everyone's schedules and who would want what shifts. He still had his smart remarks and sarcastic quips, but they showed up few and far between. When we left, he had several files in his hands and a satisfied look on his face from a job well done.

"Really?" Waylon asked as we drove past the sign welcoming us into Forks.

"Yeah, it was really cool being able to watch you work," I said. "Maybe criminal justice will be my fallback plan."

"It's a good way to make a living," he agreed. "An honest one. I don't care what you do as long as you get a degree before you do it. Your mom would kill me if I tried to steer you away from the college route."

"Oh, I know," I agreed. "She'd kill you first, then me, then bring me back to life and enroll me into the University of Washington, then make me major in history, just to spite me."

"Why wouldn't she bring me back to life?" Waylon demanded.

"Because she likes me better," I said smugly.

"Smartass," he grumbled.

"Hey… can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, kid," Waylon replied as we turned on his street.

"Did you find my red and white soccer ball the other day?" I asked. "The one I lost just after I moved in?"

Waylon frowned. "No, I didn't. Why?"

I ignored the unease settling in the pit of my stomach. Suddenly, my anxiety was coming back in full force. "Oh, maybe Mom found it then. I woke up early this morning to run some drills before Bella came to pick me up and it was laying on top of the mailbox. It was deflated and it has this giant hole on one side like somebody popped it on purpose. I didn't know if it was a wild animal or something."

My uncle hummed as he pulled into the driveway and cut the engine. "Did you throw it away?" He asked.

"No," I replied. "I put it in my room. I can show you if you want."

"Yeah, go ahead and grab it," he said.

We both exited the car and went in the house. I carried my backpack with me as I thundered up the stairs. I deposited it in my room before I grabbed the deflated soccer ball I left on my dresser and ran back downstairs.

Waylon was already sitting at the kitchen table with his files from Mason County strewn out all over the place. He looked up as I handed him the ball… or what had once been the ball. He frowned as he examined the hole torn out of the side. "It could've been a bear," he mused. "They're naturally curious. Maybe it wanted to learn soccer."

"Very funny," I rolled my eyes. "I just think it's weird that I lost it in the woods in your backyard and it just showed up on top of the mailbox in _front_ of the house."

Waylon's frown deepened. "Animals can be funny sometimes," he said. "Just in case, though, stay inside when it's dark out. The bears and deer around here like to roam around just before sunrise when there aren't as many people out. I'm sure whatever it is will go away in a day or so when it realizes it can't get into any of the garbage cans."

"Right…" I said when Waylon handed me the deflated ball. I nursed it in my hands, frowning at the gaping hole in it.

"You all right?" He asked.

I shrugged and dropped the ball on the side of the table, out of the way of all of his papers. "Yeah, it just kind of freaked me out this morning, seeing it like that and all."

"You know you're safe here, Blaire," he said seriously. "Those animals out there are more afraid of you than you are of them."

"I know," I said.

We both knew I was lying.

"Tell you what," Waylon said. "How about I teach you how to shoot?"

My eyes widened. "What the hell –"

"If the wildlife here is concerning you this much, I bet just knowing how to shoot a gun will give you some peace of mind," he said, his eyes brightening at the idea. "Yeah, trust me, you'll love it. You already like all of those James Bond movies –"

"I… was… pretending…?" I said, trying to lie. Waylon smirked at me.

"Too late!" He said. "This will be perfect for uncle-niece bonding time. Saturday morning, bright and early, on the practice field!"

I sighed. I couldn't believe what I'd just roped myself into. "You mean the backyard, right?" I asked.

He waved a pen at me and winked. "Same difference."

 **V**

* * *

So, I'm really sorry for not going into a _ton_ of detail about Blaire's first experience of going to work with her uncle, but I will! Just later on. It just wasn't as relevant to Blaire's plot as that jacked up soccer ball.

I would also like to point out I didn't leave you guys with an ugly cliff-hanger like I have in the last few chapters! It's because I am a very serious writer who has WAY more tools in their arsenal to keep readers engaged than cheap writing ploys and vampirism... Obviously.

So what did you guys think about this chapter? Yes, no, maybe so? I'm not gonna know unless I get a comment! Who knows, maybe if you guys give me a lot, I might actually update a little faster. ;) Food for thought.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend, and good luck to those who are starting school... or just starting Mondays in general!


	9. DANGEROUS

Yay! Chapter seven! You guys have no idea how hard this was for me to write, because I'm DYING to get into the action! But I felt like it was necessary, because we do have to celebrate Edwardo's return, after all. Bella has been incredibly patient.

Enjoy! Hope you guys like it!

* * *

 **7\. DANGEROUS**

"So now I know how to shoot a gun," I summarized for Bella and Jessica as we walked toward the cafeteria next Monday. "And also guilt-trip Waylon into doing whatever I want for the next decade."

"Well at least you didn't dislocate your shoulder like you actually thought," Bella said. "That wouldn't have been good for your soccer career."

"Oh God yes, but maybe we should leave that part out when I retell the story at lunch," I said. "I don't think I'll be able to handle Lauren Mallory's disappointment."

Jessica laughed. "Oh come on, I promise she's not as bad as you think she is," she said. "I think she was just worried about you and Tyler."

"Yeah, but now that it's not Tyler, it'll be soccer," I replied. "Mark my words."

I pushed my way through the doors leading out of one of Forks High's pods so we could go to the cafeteria. Cold air bit my cheeks as soon as I took my first step on the soaking wet walkway. A snowball flew across my path, and before I knew it, I felt Bella crashing right into my back. I laughed. "Don't tell me, you have an aversion to snow too?" Bella answered by grappling one of my arms in a vicelike grip, her nails almost digging through the thick cotton of my hoodie.

"What? How could you not like snow?" Jessica demanded. "It's so pretty!"

"Yeah, until it melts in your socks," Bella muttered, which cracked me up.

"Better not tell anyone else that," I said as I glanced around the small rotunda while we walked. "It'll make you sound like a prime target."

Students of all classes were playing in the snow and throwing mushy snowballs at each other. I couldn't recognize anyone fast enough, otherwise I would have joined in on the fun, but by the way Bella clung to my side and held her binder, I decided against it. Or maybe I could just throw one at her –

" _Blaire_ _watch out_!" Bella cried.

 _Swap!_

I jumped as icy cold snow smacked right into my shoulder and splattered across my face. I whipped toward my right, eyes narrowing.

"Yeah, _Blaire_ , watch out!" Tyler Crowley echoed mockingly, cackling at me from the melee of students.

I smirked and let my backpack slip off my shoulders. "Oh God, please don't," Bella groaned, but she grabbed my backpack for me before it could fall on the ground.

I darted backwards and stuck my bare hands in the first pile of snow I could find. Tyler's eyes twinkled in excitement when he saw me pack the snow in a tight ball before he turned around to run away. He didn't get very far.

I wound back and lobbed the ball straight at him, hitting him directly in the back of his neck. He gave an undignified squawk. "Yeah, _Tyler_ , watch out!" I repeated, but quickly started shoving Jessica and Bella into the cafeteria so I wouldn't face his retaliation.

Jessica was laughing hysterically as we dropped our stuff off at our table, where Angela and Eric were currently sitting and eating. "That was _amazing_!" Jessica said. "No one's been able to hit Tyler Crowley since the fifth grade! Why don't you play softball?"

"Conflict of interests," I said as we walked to the lunch line. "Soccer and softball happen during the same season, otherwise I would. But I played with my dad's family during reunions and stuff. It's a good thing I was there, otherwise Bella would've gotten _creamed_ by that thing, right –"

It was then that I realized Bella Swan wasn't even listening to the conversation at all. She was staring across the cafeteria. When I followed her gaze, I realized why.

 _Five_ Cullens sat at their usual table.

The new one was a boy who was shorter (but still tall, why were all of the boys so tall?) and lankier than Jasper Hale and Emmett Cullen. His hair was a red that was a shade or so darker than mine.

That had to be the infamous Edward Cullen.

I lunged out and grabbed Bella's shoulder, making her jump. " _Jesus_ ," she gasped.

"Almost," I said as I steered her back into the lunch line. Mike Newton had sequestered Jessica in the middle of the line, so I figured now would be the best time to bring my point up. "Geez, Bell, if you really missed me so much all you had to do was ask Waylon for my phone number. He would've given it to you."

"What are you talking about?" Bella demanded as we walked through the lunch line. I grabbed a grilled chicken sandwich while she went straight for a soda. When I saw that, I also grabbed a bag of baked potato chips.

"I'm talking about the fact that you're basically crushing on my male doppelgänger," I said. "The hair? The gangly-ness? It's all indicative that your subconscious was looking for a way to fill the void my absence created. I'm touched, really."

Booming laughter filled the cafeteria shortly after I said doppelgänger, which I thought was funny and _really_ coincidental, but I ignored it in favor of appreciating the glare Bella was sending my way. It had about the same intimidation factor as a kitten's. "He's not gangly," she said. "And I don't have a crush on him."

"Yeah you do," I replied. "It's okay, really, you can tell me just to get it over with. All of this obsessing in silence is getting kind of depressing to watch."

"I _don't_ obsess," she repeated as we walked toward our table.

"I'm sorry, you're right," I said. "I guess we just showed up to school earlier than usual last week and waited outside in the cold for a certain silver car to arrive for no reason. My mistake. That's fine. I'll just remember this when you guys get married –"

"Oh my God, Blaire, please, just _stop_ ," Bella begged. She glanced worriedly between us and the table at the very end of the cafeteria. Her face slowly started resembling a tomato. I arched a brow at her.

"Why?" I asked. "It's not like they can hear us or anything. I'm telling you, just letting it out to someone – it doesn't have to be the crush in question – will make you feel _so_ much better. Watch, I'll start. I think Jasper Hale is hot as fu –"

"Hey, did Blaire tell you guys that she almost dislocated her shoulder firing a gun this weekend?" Bella demanded as soon as we walked up to our table.

"Yeah, I think most of us heard the story in English," Mike said as we sat down. "Uh… Bella, are you okay?"

"Fine," Bella said shortly as she glared at her soda. I smirked and shoved my bag of chips at her. Mike seemed to take this as his cue to leave and departed our table fairly quickly – a move that seemed to bum Jessica out.

"You should eat," I told Bella.

She pushed the bag back in front of me. "Actually, I feel a little sick," she grumbled. I rolled my eyes.

Jessica frowned. "What's wrong?"

"I think she's nervous about biology," I said. "It appears that _he who must not be named_ has finally returned. Which reminds me, I have to apologize. Bella, I'm sorry I thought Edward Cullen was a figment of your imagination."

Bella rolled her eyes, but didn't look away from her drink.

"Well, is it a figment of _my_ imagination, or is he actually staring at you?" Jessica asked.

 _That_ got her out of her sulking. " _What_?" Bella squeaked.

I frowned. "Who?"

"Um… _he who must not be named_ ," Jessica said, trying to look discrete as she fumbled with her salad, "is _staring_ at Bella."

" _Great_ ," I said, rolling my eyes. "Again with the staring. Does anyone actually say _hi_ in Forks, or –"

Lauren-freaking- _Mallory_ actually had the audacity to scoff at me. "Like you should talk, _Holcomb_."

I glared at her. "What are you talking about, _Mallory_?"

Lauren rolled her eyes as if I was the dumbest person in the universe. I idly wondered what would happen if I lunged across the table for her. She glared at me as if she read my thoughts, or maybe my face was just that easy to read. " _Seriously_ –"

"Lauren, wait," Angela said before turning to me. "You… You seriously don't know?"

"Obviously," I retorted.

Jessica's eyes widened as if she just discovered a lost puppy. "Blaire… Jasper Hale has been looking over here all _week_."

On instinct, my gaze swept over to the other side of the cafeteria. Luckily, all of the Cullens were actually talking and laughing amongst themselves, so they were distracted. Even Jasper Hale had a content look on his face as he watched his adopted siblings. I wondered why he didn't look like that all the time.

And then one of the Cullens looked up and over at _me_. The red-haired one, Edward Cullen. Just as quickly, Jasper Hale was looking at me too.

I turned away, seriously hoping I wasn't pulling a Bella when I felt blood rush through my ears. "Why didn't anyone _tell_ me?" I demanded.

"I don't know," Lauren- _freaking_ -Mallory said. "Marissa said you guys were getting _awfully_ cozy in history. We thought you knew. So are you guys not a thing? That's a shame."

It certainly was, but she didn't need to know that.

"We've _literally_ had, like, two and a half conversations," I said, making sure to sound _extra_ Valley Girl so Lauren-freaking- _Mallory_ could understand. "I think back in the eighteen-hundreds that would amount to a marriage proposal, but here in the twenty-first century, we call it politeness. Try and keep up?"

"Blaire, come on," Jessica pleaded. "Cut us some slack. The Cullens have lived here for two years and have hardly spoken to a single person. They don't like anybody, or, well… they don't notice anybody enough _to_ like them. It's just kind of weird, that's all… Especially when it's Edward Cullen now staring at Bella."

"He… He doesn't look angry, does he?" Bella asked.

"Um… no," Jessica said. "Should he be?"

"Do you not remember last week?" I asked. "He was a total asshole for no reason. I think Bella should still give him a piece of her mind when she sees him next."

Jessica laughed. "I'd pay money to see that –"

"Stop looking at him!" Bella hissed.

Mike Newton returned shortly after and tried to convince Jessica and I to go out for a snowball fight (apparently there was one still raging in the parking lot), but I politely refused when I saw Bella fidget with her soda bottle. She hadn't even taken a sip. Even Eric and Angela went out to see what was going on. Lauren-freaking-Mallory quickly departed to hang out at a different table, one I noticed Tyler and Mike frequented when they didn't sit with us. It was full of jock-types from cheerleaders to a few soccer players on my varsity team. I debated on whether or not to move Bella and myself over there, but lunch was almost over… and Bella still looked mortified by Edward's return. So it left the two of us sitting at our table, by ourselves, in silence.

I shoved my chips back in front of Bella. "Eat," I said. "Seriously, it'll make you feel better."

She toyed with the bag, but didn't open it. "So you have a crush on Jasper Hale?" She asked.

I rolled my eyes and ignored the desire to look over at the Cullen's table. "Nice try," I said, "but if you're not going to talk about Edward, I'm not going to talk about Jasper."

Bella sighed. "Fine."

My brows rose. "Fine? Fine as in…"

"Fine as in I guess we have nothing to talk about," she said.

I frowned. "Fine."

After a few more awkward minutes of silence, I lost my appetite and shoved my bland sandwich away from me. I spent the rest of lunch reading Bella's copy of _Wuthering Heights_ while she finally opened the bag of chips and picked at them half-heartedly.

I was almost relieved when the bell rang. Mike Newton rejoined us when we left the cafeteria and I left them to walk to their next class. I think Bella and I mutually agreed we needed some time apart after whatever it was that happened at lunch. The little flurry of snow that overcame the school started melting into ugly gray puddles of slush that _squelched_ under my boots as I walked to history.

When I walked to the classroom, I frowned when I saw the door was closed and other members of my class were waiting outside, including Jasper Hale. I paused as soon as I saw him and debated on whether or not I should just skip class. After lunch today, I didn't really feel up to even seeing him.

But that plan quickly backfired as soon as his dark gaze swept up to meet mine.

I doubted I would be able to leave if I tried.

So I walked up to him, deciding it couldn't hurt just to stand next to the guy while I waited for the teacher to open the classroom door. I glanced around in case Marissa Alverez would see – the last thing I needed was for Forks High School to think I had a crush on Jasper Hale. Because it'd be a total lie.

A _total_ lie.

He was just hot. I could admire a hot guy and not call it a crush, right? I didn't even know anything about him.

"Hey, what's going on with Apell's class?" I asked as I stood beside him, making sure to keep at least a foot and a half between us. That was a polite distance, right?

"Mister Apell is updating the seating chart," he said. I tried to ignore the small thrill I always got whenever I heard him speak, but it was hard. Especially when his voice was just as handsome as his face – wait, no, _stop_ _it_ , Blaire. "He doesn't let anyone in his class until it's done."

"Oh," I said. "I almost forgot about that."

The conversation fizzled out into nothingness. I tightened my grip on one of the straps of my backpack and ignored the way excitement bubbled up in my chest at just being inches away from Jasper Hale.

It wasn't a crush. I didn't even know him.

But… I could try.

That still wouldn't make it a crush.

Right?

"So… I noticed your brother came back," I started off. "His name's Edward, right?"

"Yes," Jasper said. "There was a… family matter he had to deal with."

"Oh, okay," I said. I immediately decided I wouldn't pry when I remembered all of the Cullens were adopted. That had to come with its own set of baggage. "Sorry. I hope everything's okay now."

"It will be."

Another conversation was successfully closed.

I frowned and turned to stare at the closed door. I leaned back against the wall behind us, my backpack acting as a small cushion. I decided everyone at my lunch table had to be imagining things when they said Jasper Hale had been looking at our table all week and Marissa Alverez was probably a major gossip and read too much into the handful of conversations Jasper and I ever had.

Then –

"How were tryouts?"

I slowly looked up, feeling a slight jolt to my system when I realized Jasper Hale was already looking down at me. Expectantly.

"Oh-uh… Great!" I said. "Really great. I made the team."

He nodded. "Congratulations."

Great, now it was awkward again. Why was it so awkward? I usually considered myself a pretty easygoing, friendly person. I used to not believe in awkward silences, but right now I felt as much of a klutz socially as I was sure Bella felt physically in gym –

"I never asked… What position do you play?"

Could it really be? Was Jasper Hale trying to make conversation?

I rode through the unexpected high when I realized I had his interest. "I'm a striker," I said. "Um, basically –"

"You're the one at the very forefront of your team. You make most of the goals," he finished, surprising me. "My brother and I watch a lot of sports," he explained.

"Oh." I didn't know what else to say.

"That's a hard position," he continued. "I understand why you were so anxious last week."

"Yeah, I…" I was floundering. "The stress can get to me sometimes."

"Then why do it?" Jasper asked. "It… seems like it drains you. Emotionally, anyway."

I shrugged. "It can, but I love what I do. I think when you choose to love something, you decide the good things will always outweigh the bad."

"That's a dangerous way of thinking," he said.

Dangerous? This was coming from the guy who made alarms go off in my head whenever he _looked_ at me. How could someone like Jasper Hale think anything about _me_ was dangerous? I frowned, but before I could ask, Mister Apell opened the door and guided us to our new seats. I ended up closer to the inside of the classroom than I'd been in before, but I wasn't the only one.

Jasper Hale now sat in front of me.

 **V**

* * *

Dun, dun, _DUN_! Hooray! Eddie's back and now we can get on with the rest of the plot! Thanks for sticking with me, guys! As always, it's a blast!

Please let me know how you enjoyed the latest installment of _RAVAGE_! Also, I'd like to give a huge THANK YOU to everyone who's been reading, adding this story to their favorites and alerts, and most importantly COMMENTING! It really makes my day when I get a review, so please don't be shy in letting me know how you feel!

Have a great day!


	10. GIFT HORSES

WOW! We're almost at 2,000 READS! That's amazing! Thank you guys so much!

Now, as promised, here is a new chapter with some **~ACTION~**

Hope you enjoy it!

* * *

 **8\. GIFT HORSES**

The next morning was _awful_.

When I busted out of the front door, I actually stopped dead in my tracks.

Then I groaned.

"Are you _kidding_ me?" I wailed.

The ground was covered in a thin white sheet of snow. But as it glistened in the overcast morning light, I quickly realized it wasn't just snow anymore, but _ice_. I glared at the stuff as I stomped down the porch steps and carefully (but still spitefully) down my uncle's driveway. I threw myself in Bella's truck with a huff.

"Finally, we agree on _something_ about the weather here," Bella said.

"How could anyone possibly _enjoy_ this?" I demanded, flapping my hands at the glossy whiteness as she drove. "I can't practice in these conditions! This is so frustrating – I've been dying to get on the field all _weekend_!"

"And you lost me again," she said, making both of us laugh.

Now that Edward Cullen finally came back to school, it was like something in Bella finally relaxed. In gym, she actually played volleyball a little more enthusiastically, when we drove home (even though she almost backed into a car), she was a lot more chipper and receptive to conversation, when we hung out at my house to work on essays for _Wuthering Heights_ , I realized she genuinely seemed happier. I knew the epic change in her mood had to do with a certain copper-haired doppelgänger, but I chose not to comment.

Because of this, Bella was able to drive us to school a little later so that we were among the rabble of cars pulling into the Forks High parking lot. When she pulled into a spot a few spaces down from her usual, she sighed in relief. "I can't believe we made it," she muttered.

"Oh, come on, the ice isn't that bad," I said as I shoved my way out of the car. We were parked in the very last spot in the line, putting us further away from the school than I would have liked, especially since the weather was so cold. "I'm banking on the hope that it'll melt after lunch, what do you think? Uh, Bella?"

I turned around when I realized she wasn't listening to me. Her eyes were fixed on her tires. They were wrapped in thin metal chains.

"Oh," I said as I walked up next to her. "Snow chains. That explains it. No offense, but I kind of wondered how we made it through Main Street without any casualties, but my uncle always taught me not to look a gift horse in the mouth –"

"Charlie must've gotten up so early to put them on," Bella murmured. She reached out with one ungloved hand to touch the diamond-wrapped chains. I frowned at her, silently questioning the reverence I heard in her tone.

"Well, yeah," I said. "I'd probably have Uncle Waylon do the same if I had a car. Wait, why do you call your dad _Charlie_ –"

"No one's ever done this for me before," she said, looking up at me. My heart almost broke for her when I noticed her dark eyes were glistening. "It's usually always me –"

 _SKIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRRRRCCCCCCHHHHHHH!_

My head shot up at the sound just after I saw a dusky blue van round the corner into the Forks High parking lot out of the corner of my eye. The tires swiveled from side to side and the back of the long car fishtailed out of synch. It was coming straight for us.

" _Bella,_ _move_!" I screeched, lunging out to yank her toward me.

Everything after that happened kind of fast.

I was only able to pull Bella a few steps toward me before she fell forward and brought me down with her. The side of my head cracked painfully against the asphalt, but I quickly rolled onto my hands and knees, reaching back again to pull her with me. I felt a hot gust of air hit my back and a loud _CRASH!_ blast through my ears before an uncomfortably cold blast hit my back and lock around my middle.

Inexplicably, I heard someone curse (coincidentally, it was the same curse word I'd been chanting in my head throughout the whole mess) and I thought it was Bella, until I realized the voice was _too_ low for it to belong to a girl.

In the same instant, my body dropped hard against the back of a car parked on the other side of Bella's truck. The back of my head slammed against the trunk and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bella had been shoved in between the car I was leaning back against and the third one down the line, before black spots danced in front of my eyes. I sucked in a ragged breath and gasped when something hard tightened on my shoulder. When my eyes finally refocused, I realized I was staring at a broad chest covered in a maroon Henley. One of the body's arms gripped my shoulder while the other was braced on the trunk of the car, caging me in.

When I looked up, I found Jasper Hale's face only inches from mine.

His eyes were pitch black – so black I couldn't even see the pupils. His angular face was sharp and twisted in the most terrifying expression I'd ever seen. I immediately recognized it from my first day in honor's history. Jasper Hale managed to hide it well the first time, but now that it was plain on his face, I doubted I'd ever be able to forget it.

It was an inhuman expression.

Jasper Hale looked like a _demon_.

I forgot how to breathe. My heart raced faster than ever before. In that moment, I suddenly feared for my life. An instinct flickered in the back of my mind, begging me to run, run, _run_! But I couldn't move. I was frozen in fear. Jasper's hand tightened against my shoulder. I wondered if he would break it. I heard metal above my head groan. I whimpered.

He breathed deeply and gave a low _snarl_ that vibrated through his chest. Tears pricked at the back of my eyes.

"Jasper, _Jasper_!" Another pale figure was behind Jasper Hale in the next instant, gripping his shoulder. I didn't look away to see who the hand belonged to. "Blaire, don't move."

Yeah right, as if I'd be able to. Staring into Jasper Hale's eyes was like staring into the eyes of a shark – mesmerizing in the most horrific of ways.

"Jasper, you have to let her go," the second voice hissed. "People are coming, you have to _let go_."

I didn't understand what was happening. Why couldn't he let go? Why did he look so terrifying?

"Jasper, _please_ ," the other voice begged. " _Please_ don't do this."

"P – _Please_ , Jasper," I whispered. I didn't even know how I found my voice. It caught every other word, but at least it was there. " _Please_ let me go."

Jasper's eyes finally flickered down to mine. They softened, but it didn't relax me.

Then he was gone.

It was like he evaporated into thin air. I only felt a faint breeze against my face that ruffled my hair – those were the only tells someone had been crouching in front of me in the first place. Did it even happen?

I sucked in a shuttering breath and gripped my aching chest. My head buzzed and felt incredibly light. I slumped and crumpled onto my side like a rag doll.

"B – Bee?" Bella uttered. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her crawl toward me. "Blaire! Are you okay? Oh my God, she's bleeding –"

Hazy blackness started closing in at the corners of my eyes. The fallen van was the last thing I saw before my eyes fluttered shut.

Behind my eyelids, Jasper Hale was snarling at me.

"No, Blaire, you need to stay awake."

I blinked groggily, forcing myself into consciousness, as a voice I didn't recognize spoke and pulled me upright. I stared into the strange goldish-amber colored eyes of Jasper Hale's _brother_ , my doppelgänger, Edward Cullen.

Jasper Hale. He'd looked like he wanted to kill me. I had to _run_.

My heartrate _skyrocketed_ as my thoughts spiraled into a million different directions at once.

 _Run, pain, run, escape, pain._

I tried to shift backwards, but realized I couldn't as the car behind me became a wall. I tried to stand up, but I slipped on a patch of ice beneath me and slammed my head into the trunk again. I started seeing stars.

"Oh my God, Blaire, don't _move_!" Bella exclaimed, but my eyes were fixed on the other Cullen. Was he going to do what Jasper Hale did earlier? My head continued to buzz and throb. Speaking of Jasper Hale –

I searched the immediate space around us, but the blond boy was nowhere in sight. Where was he? He'd been right in front of me – where did he go?

"What –" I wheezed, "What – What the – the fu –"

"She's going into shock," Edward Cullen was already on his feet and talking to people in uniforms with stretchers. "She may have a concussion."

Everything after that happened kind of fast and slow at the same time. Every time I would blink, I would be somewhere else. On a stretcher, inside an ambulance, in the ER. I threw up twice: once on the ambulance ride and once in the actual hospital. I just wanted to go to sleep, but every time I tried, someone would shine an obnoxiously bright light in my face, or Bella would be screaming at me to "wake up," and I was tired of it.

At the hospital, I was rushed through an MRI, then finally left alone – but I still couldn't sleep. Mainly because Tyler Crowley was in the same room as Bella and I and he wouldn't _stop talking_.

"God you guys, I am _so_ sorry," he said, not for the first time.

"I'm fine," Bella assured Tyler. "And so is Blaire. The doctors said she had a minor concussion."

"Yeah, I'm _super-duper_ ," I said, rolling my eyes. I turned away from the two and closed my eyes, but the fluorescents were so bright I knew I wouldn't be getting any sleep. I sighed.

"Are _you_ okay?" Bella went on, quieter this time. "You – You look awful."

" _I'm_ fine, I thought I was going to kill _you_!" Tyler, clearly, didn't know how to be considerate. "I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong…"

"Don't worry about it – you missed us."

"How did you get out of the way so fast?" Tyler asked. "You were right _there_ , and then you were gone…"

"Well, Blaire pulled me out of the way at first, but Edward was there too."

"Who?"

"Edward Cullen?" Bella tried again. "He… He was standing next to us. Right Blaire?"

I didn't say anything. I didn't know _what_ to believe. I didn't see Edward when the van was coming toward us, or Jasper. Didn't she see Jasper? What about _that_?

While getting bandaged up and talking to several nurses and EMTs, I was informed I may have hit the asphalt so hard I passed out. The fact that I'd been drifting in and out of consciousness on the way to the hospital seemed to solidify this fact for everyone. It made me wonder if Jasper Hale's presence had been an insane nightmare my subconscious drew up to force me awake.

As farfetched as it seemed, it was the only thing that made sense.

But I decided I wouldn't mention it.

"Cullen? I didn't see him…" Tyler said. "Wow, it was all so fast, I guess. Is he okay?"

"I think so," Bella replied. "He's here somewhere, but they didn't make him use a stretcher."

Shortly after, Bella was wheeled away to get her own MRI. Tyler and I awkwardly exchanged eye-contact in silence.

"I'm… I'm sorry," he finally said. I rolled my eyes.

"Tyler, obviously I'm not dead, and I still have the function of my legs," I said. "I'm banged up, but I'll survive."

"It was _really_ brave of you to pull Bella to safety like that," he said. "I don't even know what I'd do if I was in the same situation."

I shrugged, but didn't say anything. I didn't know what there was to say. I almost wanted to mention it hadn't been just me that pulled Bella and myself to safety, that Edward really was there too – or was he?

And what about _Jasper_? Remembering his face, twisted in rage and… and…

I let out a shaky breath to steady myself. It was a dream, it was a dream, it was a dream.

But, God, his _face_!

The thought turned something in my stomach – or maybe it was the lingering effects of my concussion – and I grabbed the bucket a nurse left on a table next to my bed. My retching shut Tyler up faster than any response to his apologies could do.

I tried to sleep again once Bella got wheeled back into the room so she could deal with Tyler, who started his apologetic rambling when she got in his sights. My breaths finally, slowly, started to even out –

"Is she sleeping?"

My eyes snapped open. I shot upright and looked at the red haired boy, Edward Cullen, as he slowly made his way into the room. He stood at the foot of Bella's bed, a smirk on his face, but his eyes cautious when they met mine.

My heart started beating a lot faster. My fingers curled into the thin bed sheets. The fear was irrational – I knew now – because Jasper Hale had been a dream, but that didn't stop the unease prowling around my head as we shared a long look.

"Hey, Edward, I'm really sorry –" Tyler began, but Edward raised his hand to wave him off.

"No blood, no foul," he said, accompanying the words with a smile that showed off all of his bright white teeth. The expression almost looked unnatural. He turned to Bella. "So, what's the verdict?"

"There's nothing wrong with me at all, but they won't let me go," Bella complained. "How come you aren't on a gurney like the rest of us?"

He shrugged. "It's all about who you know. But don't worry, I came to spring you."

"Only after I complete my diagnosis."

I turned, dizzying myself as I watched a young blond man walk through the doors. He was unearthly handsome and pale with dark circles under his eyes. My heart sank. Oh my God, it was the other one – the Cullen's father. He gave me a gentle smile that did absolutely _nothing_ to ease my nerves before stopping at Bella's bed.

"So, Miss Swan," he began. His voice was smooth and strangely articulate, like someone who chose their words with care. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Bella, the ever-stubborn, said shortly.

I watched the man walk past Bella's bed toward a lightboard set on the wall behind her. He turned it on, revealing X-rays of my best friend's skull. "Your X-rays look good," he said. "Does your head hurt? Edward said you hit it pretty hard."

"It's fine," Bella sighed.

I tensed as I watched Doctor Cullen reach out and feel along Bella's skull. When she flinched, I almost flew out of my own hospital bed in a mad rush to protect her – memories of Jasper's iron grip on my shoulder at the forefront of my thoughts. What was _wrong_ with me? It'd only been a dream, yet it seemed like it set me on edge for no reason.

"Tender?" He asked.

"Not really," Bella replied. Uh, did she not just flinch?

"Well, your father is in the waiting room – you can go home with him now. But come back if you feel dizzy or have any trouble with your eyesight at all."

I leaned back against my own bed, relief hitting me like a ton of bricks. I let out a long breath I didn't even realize I was holding. She'd be with Charlie soon, away from the Cullens that suddenly terrified me to no end.

"Can't I go back to school?" Bella asked instead. I looked at her.

"You're kidding me, right?" I demanded. "You almost get hit by a van and you're ready to hit the _books_?"

Bella cringed. "But I'm –"

" _Fine_. Yeah, I know, we know, we've all heard it," I said. "Just go home, Bella. Take it easy. Then you can tell everyone at school tomorrow how brave everyone was when they saved your life. Tell them I take payments in cookies. Chocolate chip, to be exact."

"Actually," Doctor Cullen interrupted, "most of the school seems to be in the waiting room."

"Oh no," Bella moaned, covering her face with her hands.

"Do you want to stay…?" Doctor Cullen asked, but didn't get much further as Bella started swinging her legs off the bed.

"No, no!" She said. I snickered when she almost tripped over herself in her haste to get away. "I'm fine!"

"Take some Tylenol for the pain," Doctor Cullen said.

"It doesn't hurt that bad," Bella insisted.

"It sounds like you were extremely lucky," the doctor said with a polite smile before turning to his paperwork.

"Lucky _Edward_ happened to be standing next to me," Bella said, glancing at Edward.

My heart raced when the boy in question stiffened. The doctor seemed more focused on the papers in front of him now. "Oh, well, yes," he said before turning on Tyler. "I'm afraid you'll have to stay with us just a little bit longer."

I watched Bella sidle up to Edward's side. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" She asked quietly.

"Your father is waiting for you," Edward answered. I could see the frustration on his face.

"I'd like to speak with you alone, if you don't mind," Bella pushed. I wanted to scream at Bella to just _stop_ , but it was too late. Edward rolled his eyes before turning around and walking out of the room, leaving Bella to follow.

"Bella!" I called just before she left. She turned to look at me. I glanced awkwardly at the doctor and Tyler, hoped they weren't listening when I looked back at her. "Gift horses, remember?" I asked weakly.

A muscle in her jaw jumped, but she nodded. And then she was gone. Tyler had also been rolled out to prepare him for discharge. His parents were on their way.

Which left me alone with Doctor Cullen.

 **V**

* * *

You know what I said about cliff-hangers? Yeah, well, apparently I need them. *shrugs*

HOLY SMOKES, THIS CHAPTER THO! What did you guys think? Was Jasper _really_ there to save Blaire from the van, or was it a figment of her imagination?

Comment and let me know! Seriously, your reviews make my day! Thank you to everyone else who has also put this story in their favorites and alerts, too!


	11. TRACKS

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Honestly, your comments give m E! I love you all! Thank you for such generous feedback! It really makes my day when I know people are out there reading my little ideas and loving them as much as I do!

This chapter is dedicated to kimberlyannelston for giving this chapter a once-over before I posted it! She's definitely helping me stay on track! Thank you! :)

* * *

 **9\. TRACKS**

I stared at Doctor Cullen as he continued signing papers, his hand moving quickly and elegantly across the pages, not giving me the time of day. My heart jumped up into my throat when he finally turned to look at me.

Yup, he was definitely just as attractive as the rest of his family and just as pale too. It was sad that I'd almost become desensitized to the fact that there were some people who looked average in this town and then others that looked damn-near _godly_.

"Wh – Where's my mom?" I asked. "And my uncle? Did anybody tell them –?"

"Yes, Miss Holcomb. Everything has been taken care of," Doctor Cullen assured me. "They're also in the lobby, but I will have a nurse escort them to a room. I'd like to keep you a few more hours for observation, just to make sure you're all right. Unlike Bella, you have a concussion that's already shown immediate symptoms."

I swallowed as he walked closer to my bed. He frowned at me. "Are you feeling all right, Miss Holcomb?"

"Just Blaire," I corrected. "I'm okay."

He offered me a small, kind smile. "Well then, Just Blaire," he said. I could've almost smiled at the dad-like joke if I wasn't so terrified. "Your X-rays don't show signs of any serious trauma. In a day or so, you should also be able to go back to school and your normal routine."

"S – Soccer included?" I asked.

"Yes," he said. "But if you feel any pressure or headaches, you'll need to take a break."

"Um… okay."

"Do you have any questions for me, Blaire?"

"No," I said quickly, realizing (with no small amount of hope) that I'd make it through this conversation alive. Then I frowned. "Well, yes."

He looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to go on.

"Do people with concussions…" I started out. "Do they have vivid dreams – or nightmares?"

He frowned.

"Um…" I struggled. "I – I think right after I hit the ground, I passed out. I saw something that… that couldn't have been real. It _felt_ real, but I don't know. I kept going in and out of consciousness apparently. That's normal, right?"

"People who experience traumas to the head experience different things," Doctor Cullen answered vaguely. "I think it would be best if you stayed home from school tomorrow as well, take some more time to rest."

"Oh… okay," I said quietly.

He smiled kindly. "I'll also run this information by your mother and uncle. I do hope you feel better soon, Blaire."

 **V**

The next four hours made me want to pass out from sheer _boredom_. When I was reunited with my mom and Waylon, my mom was a frenzy of dried tears and anxious chattering while my uncle tried to calm her down, but he was horrible at it since he looked just as stressed out.

I texted Bella throughout the day, along with the majority of Forks High School, but Bella was the most entertaining. We swapped stories about being cooped up in our respective places as we "rested."

By the time I was finally released from the hospital, most of the kids at Forks High were just about to leave, which was great because I could skip the little get-well-soon party I was sure Jessica was planning. They had to wheel me out to the car in a wheel chair, which was half-embarrassing and half-appreciated since I still felt shaky on my legs.

I sat in the backseat of my mom's sedan while Waylon was in the driver's seat, waiting for my mom to return after signing out the final paperwork. When she walked back to the car, she had two items in her hands she _didn't_ walk in with. I frowned when she got in the car. "What's that?" I asked.

"These were at the front desk for you," she said. She reached around the front seat to hand them to me. The first thing was a bouquet of lush purple flowers that filled my nose with an intense florally aroma. It made my still-sensitive head ache. I quickly pushed it to the side and reached for the second item: a small brown paper bag. "I think you have a secret admirer."

I opened the bag and my eyes widened. Inside were a dozen chocolate chip cookies.

"Psh, I doubt it," I said, but I reached in the bag and pulled out a cookie. It was small, the size of a silver dollar, and soft between my fingers. Then I took a bite. "Holy shit," I said.

"Bee!" My mom said. "Language!"

"Uh, trust me, you'll understand why," I said as I passed out two cookies to my mom and uncle.

My uncle popped the whole thing in his mouth. "Holy shit," he echoed through a full mouth.

My mom didn't say anything after taking her dainty bite.

"Remind me to get hit by cars more often," I joked as I reached for another one. "These are the best cookies ever."

The rest of the ride home was quiet. I had a feeling everyone was trying to process the day in their own ways. After I polished off all the cookies (which were that good, _okay_?), I drifted in and out of sleep for the thirty-minute-long commute and started looking forward to the thought of going to bed.

But then we pulled into the driveway.

"Son of a bitch," Waylon cursed.

I perked up and looked out the front window. I wished I hadn't.

My dad's car was in the driveway.

"What the fu –"

"Please, Blaire, not right now," my mom said as she got out of the car.

"Did you know about this?" I asked Waylon, watching my uncle glare at the white Mercedes parked in my mom's usual spot. The driver's door opened when my mom walked up to it and a man stepped out. He had strawberry blond hair and a lean figure, accented by a bulky Northface and thin slacks. He whirled around to look right at my mom's car. Right at me.

"I didn't think he'd be here until tomorrow," he grumbled.

My heart started beating a little bit faster as _my dad_ made his way toward the car with my mom on his heels. Uncle Waylon got out as well. I heard everyone talking at once. When I realized my dad was reaching out to open the back door on the passenger's side, I scrambled backward and shoved myself out of the back door on the driver's side.

"Stay _away_ from me," I spat as I stumbled for the house. I was still dizzy, so when I tipped to the side, Waylon was there to catch me.

"Blaire, honey, please, I came here to make sure you're all right," my dad said, rounding the front of my mom's sedan to get to me.

He reached me just as I steadied myself and crushed me into his chest. "God, I was so worried about you," he murmured. "What the hell happened?"

"One of the kids at her school hit a patch of ice and slid into her friend's truck," Waylon replied. "If Blaire weren't there, the other girl could've been killed."

"The _other girl_?" My dad said incredulously. I finally wiggled out of his arms, landing back into Waylon. "What about _my daughter_? This is unbelievable, what kind of backwoods county is this that lets students drive on icy roads? Why wasn't there some kind of delay? Blaire could have been _killed_!"

"Yeah, well I wasn't, so it's no big deal," I said. "You came out here for nothing. Why don't you just go back to Seattle –"

"I want to take her with me," my dad said. He wasn't looking at me, but at my mom. "I can't believe you let her make this decision on her own! Seattle Tech was the best choice for her – it was _always_ the best choice! We shouldn't have even given her the opportunity to leave –"

"I would have _never_ stayed with you!" I snapped.

"Cool it, Blaire," my dad said icily. It was a phrase he'd used a lot since I was a child.

Three simple words made me explode.

"Cool it?" I echoed.

Before I knew what I was doing, I reached out and shoved him as hard as I could, making him stumble back a few steps. "Blaire!" My mom gasped.

I ignored her. "You want me to _cool it_?" I demanded, my voice rising to a shout. "You want me to just cool down after everything, after what you did – to my mom, to _me_? You can't just show up and decide what changes and where I go!"

"I'm trying to do –"

"No!" I said. "I want to know why you think I'd even _want_ to go back to Sea-Tech. You've already admitted to screwing more than just my teammate's mom – I bet you've already fucked the whole _school_ by now!"

"Blaire Charmine Holcomb, though your mother and I are going through a difficult time, I am still your father –"

 _Swap!_

My dad's head whipped to the side while the flat of my hand burned. I watched the cold air redden the side of his face.

"You are _not_ my father!" I screamed. "You are _not_ my family! I don't want anything to do with you _ever again_! I _hate_ you!"

I shoved past my mom and ran into the house, ignoring the pounding in my head until I finally made it to my room. I slammed the door shut behind me and dizzily dropped onto my bed and just _sobbed_.

Everything finally hit me. The shock from the crash, the realization that I could have died, the fact that my dad was the biggest asshole on the face of the planet and that there was no chance in hell my family would ever be the same again, but most importantly – I could have _died_.

I tried to take a nap, like I wanted to ever since I got in the damn accident to begin with, but I was so restless. I was too wound up, my skin felt like pins and needles when I realized my dad was just downstairs. I was surprised that I didn't hear anyone yelling or fighting. The silence was… disturbing.

Half an hour later, I caught a whiff of my mom's spaghetti and meatballs from downstairs. Then someone knocked on my door. Uncle Waylon poked his head inside.

"Hungry?" He asked.

Even though my stomach said _yes_ , I hesitated. "Is _he_ down there?"

"No. He left right after… well, all that."

I frowned. "You think I was too hard on him?"

Waylon shrugged. "Your mom's too easy, you're too harsh – I guess it balances itself out. We all deal with grief differently, kiddo."

"Is Mom mad?" I asked.

"No," he said. "I think the best word would be disappointed. She's still riding on the hope that you can all be a family, even if she and your dad aren't together."

I scoffed. "That's not happening."

"I think they're both beginning to realize that – or at least your dad's beginning to realize he's got a lot more work to do to earn your trust back. Don't stress about it now though, Bee. It's been a long day for everyone, the longest for you. Let's go downstairs and eat."

 **V**

The next day was _slow_. Thanks to her job, my mom could work from home, but I was surprised to find Waylon in jeans and a T-shirt when I came downstairs the next morning. Apparently Charlie had given him the day to work from home in case I needed anything, which I wouldn't, because I was _fine_.

I was banned from going outside to run drills, so I suffered through crappy daytime TV shows or surfing the internet to learn new drills I could start implementing in my current routine. Nothing came from that except a desire to go outside and start practicing.

I was _bored_.

So I sat across from Waylon at the kitchen table and looked at the purple flowers sitting in a vase between us. They were tall and gorgeous and filled the air with a pleasant – if not a little strong – aroma. I could handle it better now that the side effects of my concussion were passing.

I sighed. _Loudly_.

When I didn't get a response, I did it again.

Waylon didn't even look up. He still marked his pen along papers without pause.

Obviously, this called for drastic measures.

I shoved the vase to the side so nothing could separate the view I had of my uncle and I started to stare.

And stare.

And _stare_.

After about two minutes, he finally cracked. "Don't you have, uh, homework or something?" He asked.

"Nope," I replied, popping the 'p.' "I already finished that this morning. Bella won't be here with today's assignments until after school, so I'm a free agent."

He grunted, then focused on his papers again.

I leaned forward in my seat. " _So_ …" I said, dragging out the word just to grate on his nerves. "What are you up to?"

Waylon sighed, but relented. "I'm working on the paperwork to close the Grisham Mill attack," he said.

I frowned. "Did you catch the animal?"

"No," he replied, "but the trail's gone cold. We only found one print leading east and that was it."

He sorted through a thick file at his side and pulled out a black and white picture of the ground. I frowned. "I don't see anything," I said.

"That's what a lot of folks at the Mason County department said too," he replied. "Now watch this."

He pulled a Sharpie from the side of the table. Before my eyes, he outlined the shapes of two ovular prints in the ground, one a little bigger than the other. "They're very light," he explained. "I didn't even see it until the light hit it perfectly. There were a few other tracks just like it, but this was the clearest picture I could get."

"Are they… deer tracks?" I asked dumbly. "They've got hooves, right? Those are… round…"

I faltered under my uncle's stare and fell silent.

"City life has ruined you," he finally said.

"Oh right, yeah, sorry, I forgot to tell you. Because I came into the semester late, I missed the lecture about _hunting and gathering_ at Forks High," I said, making my uncle smirk.

"I guess that'll be another thing to work on then," he said.

Waylon explained the ins and outs of basic tracking (most of it flew over my head) and why this particular print was so hard for him to read. Apparently, it didn't match anything he'd ever seen before. He hadn't brought it up to anyone at either station yet, though, claiming that he still needed time to build a proper case before bringing it to anyone's attention.

We stayed like that until Bella let herself in through the front door. She almost tripped in, her arms laden with gift bags, flowers, and a few balloons. "Hi," she greeted breathlessly. Waylon and I got up to help her. "All of these are for you, everyone can't wait until you get to school tomorrow."

"I think they went a little overboard," I admitted, frowning at a stuffed white bear with a cast on one of its arms. "We can take this stuff to my room."

Bella followed me upstairs and we threw everything on my bed. Bella sat down among the plush toys with a sigh. "You have no idea how much I struggled with dragging this through school."

I smirked. "I can imagine," I replied. After picking up the scissors at my desk, I started grabbing balloons and cutting them open to deflate them. They would be promptly thrown away after. "Thanks for bringing this stuff here – and coming over, most importantly. I've been so bored. How was school?"

"Horrible," she said, reaching for one of the books piled on my nightstand. It was one of hers, of course. Her library was slowly making its way into my room when she found out I could actually stand _Wuthering Heights_. "Everyone thought you died. They're probably going to make you repeat the story, like, ten times – just FYI. I talked Eric out of writing a piece about you in the school newspaper."

I rolled my eyes. "I just want to forget it even happened."

Then I spied a familiar brown paper bag sitting on my nightstand, next to a box of cupcakes. I lunged for them. "Oh, yes!" I exclaimed when I saw the same chocolate chip cookies inside. "Someone left these at the hospital for me too. Do you know who made them? They're the best."

Bella frowned when I handed her one of the small, insanely soft cookies. She bit into it and gave a small nod. It was the Bella seal of approval. "Um, Jasper did, actually," she said after swallowing.

I paused with one of the cookies halfway in my mouth. " _What_?"

"It was kind of awkward," she said. "He came up to the table during lunch and just gave me the bag, saying it was for you. It happened kind of fast, he walked away right after he dropped it off. I think Lauren Mallory almost exploded after he left. Jessica wouldn't shut up about it in gym. I thought he made them himself, but Edward told me it was their mom," she added, as if that would lessen the blow, somehow.

"Oh." I dropped the cookie back into the bag and put it to the side. "That was nice of him… or his mom."

"Yeah… Um, Blaire…" Bella said. "About yesterday –"

"What?" My voice cracked. I wasn't lying when I said I wanted to forget about it.

She frowned at me. "I just… wanted to say thank you – for pulling me out of the way. You saved my life. Without you... I probably would have died."

The words were uncomfortable to hear out loud. Bella and I sat in silence, processing.

"I guess we _really_ have to be best friends now, right?" I asked, trying to joke.

Her brows shot up. "We always have been, Bee," she said. "Time and distance didn't change that for me."

Did the room feel tighter, or was it just my throat closing with emotion? I cleared it and looked away, grabbing one of the cookies from the brown paper bag and surrendering to the deliciousness. Even my irrational fear of the family couldn't keep me from their amazing cookies, which made me hope I would be able to get over the strange fear completely.

"So… are the Cullens getting more attention after Eddie's little stunt?" I asked, essentially brushing off Bella's declaration. I think we preferred it that way.

"No," she said, frowning. "Nobody's even talked to him about it. He won't even talk to _me_ about it. I can't believe it. He was _right there_. Do you think he regrets it?"

"What? Saving us? If that's the case, he'd be the shittiest superhero ever."

Bella's eyes narrowed. "So you saw it too, then."

I was lost. "Wait, what?"

"Edward was on the other side of the parking lot," she said. "There was no way he could've gotten to us as fast as he did – if he were _normal_. Why didn't you say anything? I thought I was going crazy –"

"Because you _are_ , Bell," I said. "I was making a joke. Maybe Doctor Cullen was wrong – I think that fall ruined your sense of humor. I passed out as soon as my head hit the asphalt, remember? I woke up to Edward in front of me – he got to us after the van tipped."

"A van that we should've been _crushed_ under," she said. "He pushed us out of the way, Blaire – he stopped the van. He left _dents_ in it!"

"I…" I shut my mouth. It was too impossible to believe. I shook my head. "I passed out. I didn't see any of that."

Bella let out an exasperated groan. "Great," she said. " _Just_ great. Of course the only person I can talk to this about didn't even _see_ anything happen."

I stopped talking, trying to occupy my hands and my focus on the chocolate chip cookies, realizing there were only two left. Just like there were only two options I could choose from to handle Bella's words.

The first option was that she was lying. The only problem with that was Bella wasn't a liar. She was honest to a fault. It'd been maddening during our childhood, but right now it was just troubling. She wouldn't make something up like this just to get attention, or try to trick me, or... It didn't even make sense to _lie_ about what she saw in the first place.

The second option was that she passed out and had a vivid dream too, except hers starred Edward Cullen. But that made zero sense as well because Doctor Cullen looked at her X-rays and she had no signs of trauma. And how could she and I have such similar dreams? It was impossible.

So, if Bella was telling the truth, that meant two things.

Edward Cullen wasn't who he appeared to be.

And I didn't actually pass out.

Because if Edward Cullen could stop a van with his bare hands, it was just as possible that the demon I saw in Jasper Hale was _real_.

"I… I don't know what to tell you, Bella," I finally said. "To be honest, I don't think I'm going to be able to talk about the accident again. I want this to be the last time we bring it up. _Ever_. Okay?"

Bella's face crumpled in guilt. "Okay. I'm sorry, Blaire."

I nodded, looking at the cookies in my lap with new eyes, wondering _why_ Jasper gave me them in the first place.

 **V**

* * *

Oooohhhh intrigue! Is this crazy or what?!

I apologize if the chapter seemed a little filler-y, but I thought it was incredibly necessary for Blaire's side of the story, and I couldn't find a way to write around it.

Next chapter will be entertaining FOR SURE, so stick around! Also, let me know how you feel about this chapter with a comment so I know I'm doing good/okay/horrible. Thanks in advance!


	12. SIDE EFFECTS

I don't think you guys are ready for this chapter.

Just sayin'.

;)

* * *

 **10\. SIDE EFFECTS**

A month after the accident, things went back to normal.

Well, almost.

My dad left the same day he arrived and I hadn't heard a word from him since. I almost didn't notice.

Bella and I downplayed all the attention we got from the accident as best we could, even if Tyler Crowley was an unstoppable force of nature when it came to how _sorry_ he was. Suffice to say, whatever connection we had during my first week of school effectively disappeared as soon as I snapped at him when he apologized one too many times at lunch. That didn't stop him from pestering Bella, though, who was much nicer than me.

The relationship I had with my best friend from childhood was still the same, if not closer than before. It was like age only made things better for Bella and I. We went to each other's houses after school, sometimes stayed for dinner, and spent every other weekend together. Though we didn't admit it aloud, we realized we were slowly becoming inseparable. Bella became a sort of good influence on me, recommending more classic books for me to read from Jane Austen to Chaucer. The books cycling through Waylon's house thrilled my mom to no end and made me realize she and Bella were a lot alike. I taught Bella the basics of soccer and even _almost_ had her half-convinced to start running with me.

When I wasn't with Bella, I was playing soccer. As always, I spent every free and waking moment to practices and drills. Games were a breeze. While I would never say I was singlehandedly pulling the Forks High Spartans up the ranks, it helped that they had a more reliable striker at the front of the team. I was getting on Coach Davis's good side and, most importantly, Marissa Alverez's too. I developed closer relationships with my teammates (except Lauren-freaking-Mallory, of course) and it gave me a lot more confidence. By the time March rolled around, I was already the favorite for a captain or co-captain's position next year.

Despite the happiness I felt living in Forks, that didn't stop my mom from looking at places to live in Seattle. It was something I tried not to think about.

Waylon became something of a recluse. He worked a lot more lately. It was becoming a routine for him to see me off in the mornings and not come home until eight-thirty in the evenings. I almost wanted to joke about him having a girlfriend, but the haggard, frustrated look on his face stopped me every time. On weekends he would be back to his usual self. He never missed my games, tried to teach me how to shoot and discern animal tracks (something he believed every person should know a little bit about), or went fishing with Charlie. I actually started to enjoy shooting guns recognizing animal tracks, but when Waylon mentioned actually going _hunting_ with him, I stopped learning everything altogether. Now he was trying for camping.

Everything was almost perfect, except a certain blond boy who stalked my nightmares every other night.

That irrational fear from the dream of Jasper Hale in the middle of the accident was still going strong. To say it put a damper on my social life was an understatement. The first day I was back at school and we met eyes in the cafeteria, I had to hide out in the library. I skipped history right after because I was afraid of having a panic attack right in the middle of a lecture. Everyone at my lunch table thought I was going crazy after hitting my head in the accident. I did too.

But my fears were erased after a check-up with Doctor Cullen. He assured me the dark emotions I felt, from irritability to paranoia, were all side effects of the concussion. It was possible that I would still have them even _months_ after the accident. That was something that didn't sit well with me. I wanted to nip them in the bud as soon as possible.

So I started working through the fear on my own. The second day I was back in school, I said hello to Jasper Hale in history and thanked him for the cookies. The mere act almost worked me into total hysteria, but it only reaffirmed the fact that I was on the right track. I needed to change my outlook. I _would_ change it. Since then, I forced myself to greet him in history every day. In slow increments, my fear lessened. Almost like he could tell I was struggling (or maybe I was just super weird now), he always greeted me back and didn't say anything else. It was just as relieving as it was… kind of sad.

Because maybe – _just_ maybe, I actually started to like Jasper Hale. Just a little bit. When he wasn't acting stiff or strange, he could actually exude a sort of quiet confidence that gave me calm. When I reflected on it the second week after the accident, I realized Jasper Hale would probably be my ideal guy, if it weren't for that stupid dream. It was almost insane – No, it _was_ insane. How could someone as quiet and unassuming as Jasper Hale be capable of filling me with such unadulterated _terror_? It made no sense.

I settled for pining away for him in silence, fighting with myself, looking forward to the day that I could just _get over_ whatever problem my subconscious seemed to have with Jasper Hale. I hoped he would be waiting by the time I won.

At least the ice was gone.

Instead of snowball fights, Mike started talking about the beach again.

And Jessica started talking about the girls' choice Spring Formal.

Or, well, she mainly pestered Bella to make sure it was _really_ _okay_ if she asked Mike to the dance. Bella had to take all of Spanish and the walk to the cafeteria to convince Jessica it really _was fine_ yesterday.

Today, Bella and I both got the sneaking suspicion that she'd been let down, especially when Mike wasn't sitting at our table and Jessica was talking animatedly to anyone who would listen – besides Bella or myself.

"Are you guys going to go to the dance?" Angela asked Bella and I politely while I flicked my fork through a salad.

Bella floundered. I had a feeling even _talking_ about dancing was awkward for her. "Well, uh, no –"

"It might be fun," I said with a shrug in order to save Bella from saying anything else. "Why?"

"Well, I was thinking about maybe putting a group together," Angela said. "A lot of us don't really have anyone we want to ask, so I think it'll be fun to go as friends –"

"Wait, Blaire Holcomb doesn't have anyone to ask to the _dance_?" Lauren-freaking-Mallory asked, tearing herself away from Jessica's incessant (somewhat manic – but I was sure that happened to every girl who ever got shot down) prattling. " _Really_? I think everybody's been expecting you to ask Jasper Hale for _weeks_ now."

Fear washed through me. It was a knee-jerk reaction I fought tooth and nail against. My fingers tightened around my little plastic fork. "I… I really don't know why people think that," I said. My tone lacked its usual casual flow. It sounded brittle to my own ears.

"I dunno," Lauren-freaking-Mallory replied with a dainty shrug. "Sorry for bringing it up. If you don't like him, then I'm sure you wouldn't care if someone else asks him to the dance then."

I looked up at her. "Like who?" I asked.

"Me?"

One simple word lit a fire in my chest. One that was warm and familiar and made me feel like the old Blaire Holcomb again. It was the spark of competition, a flicker of confidence, and the flare of aggression.

"I mean, why not?" Lauren went on. "It's obvious that he's not dating Alice Cullen and if you're not interested in him –"

"You totally should."

Lauren-freaking-Mallory's eyes widened. Jessica almost choked on her water. Angela looked more lost than I normally did in trig.

"I mean, why not?" I asked. My tone was _way_ too innocent. "I didn't realize that you even liked Jasper, but now it's so obvious. You know what? You should ask him right now. The timing's _perfect_! Lunch is almost over and I can totally grill him in history for you to get his play-by-play."

Lauren-freaking-Mallory's pale face started turning splotchy from either rage or embarrassment, I wasn't sure. "Fine," she said icily.

"Great," I replied through gritted teeth.

The rest of lunch passed with halfhearted conversations, mostly dampened by the tension crackling between me and Lauren-freaking- _Mallory_. In between the forkfuls of salad I didn't taste, I would watch her scan the Cullen's table with a calculated look in her pale eyes.

As soon as the bell rang, she was out of her seat like a rocket and making her way toward the other side of the cafeteria.

I shot up as well, but walked in the opposite direction, using all of my willpower not to slam my half-eaten salad in the garbage can.

"Hey, Jasper! Wait up!" I heard Lauren-insert-a- _stronger_ -expletive-here-Mallory shout across the cafeteria. Something in my chest physically _ached_ at the sight of her walking right up to him, her platinum blonde hair bouncing in its ringlets. He paused right next to a garbage can and watched her approach.

A sudden wave of inadequacy filled me up and made my eyes burn when she stood in front of him. She was so much taller and prettier with her long legs and curves that she enhanced by the tight T-shirt and jeans she wore. She looked like she could actually _date_ Jasper Hale.

"Bee, wait up!" Bella said.

"Sorry!" I called back to her, forcing fake chipper-ness. "I've got to run to history, I just realized I forgot to ask Mister Apell about some extra credit work, but I'll see you in gym!"

I walked to class by myself, lost in sheer amazement at my own stupidity. It was honestly incredible, only me – Blaire Holcomb – could let her Forks High nemesis ask her crush to the school dance with such finesse. Seriously, someone should make a TV show on my life and call it _What Not to Do_.

Of course, matters didn't help when I walked into my class and noticed Jasper Hale wasn't sitting in his desk. I couldn't even look at it long without feeling dejected. I slunk into my seat just behind his and pulled out my history book, flipping it to a current chapter and pretended to read.

"Blaire?"

I didn't think I liked the sound of my own name more as it came from such a low, rugged voice. The subtle lilt to his words gave my name an extra dimension I never knew existed. I looked up, somewhat surprised to see that Jasper Hale was in his seat, turned around to look at me.

All of my muscles tensed, but not in a way that prepared me to leap out of my seat and run out of the classroom in terror, but anticipation. _Excitement_. I almost wished it was the former when I remembered Lauren-freaking-Mallory sauntering up to him. "Uh… hey," I said. "Wh – What's up?"

One corner of his mouth quirked up, but it was gone as soon as it appeared. I was starting to learn Jasper Hale wasn't one to show a lot of emotions – at least the positive ones. "I just wanted to make sure you were all right," he said. "I noticed you left the cafeteria in a rush. Your friends looked concerned."

I was too surprised that he even noticed me at all to say anything. "Oh," I stuttered, "no. I'm fine, everything's okay, I was um… I was just leaving to give La – Lauren a chance to ask you to the dance."

He frowned. "I see."

"Um, yeah," I said. "You guys will probably have a lot of fun."

"Maybe," he agreed. My heart sank. "I wouldn't know, though."

Now it was my turn to frown. "You – You wouldn't?"

"I said no," he said, which made my stomach do summersaults in pure elation. "I don't really do dances."

And then my mood dropped. So much for me asking him then. Wait, how could I even ask him in the first place? I felt like I was on a rollercoaster. "Oh… okay."

"Are you sure you're all right?" He asked.

" _Fine_!" I chirped, internally cringing at how fake my answer sounded. "I've, uh, just been going through a lot."

"I can imagine," he said. "My father told me you got a concussion during the accident. I'm sure that's caused a lot of stress."

He definitely hit the nail on the head with that one. It was kind of scary how right he was, actually.

"It did…" I admitted. "But it's better now. I'm starting to feel like myself again."

"I'm glad."

That was it. The end of another conversation. Mister Apell came into the room and started class. Instead of sitting through the hour pensive and tense like I usually did, I actually felt lighter, like the burden from the past month had been lifted. Did that mean I'd finally gotten over the side effects of my concussion?

 **V**

In gym, it seemed like everyone around me was tense. Mike avoided us like the plague and Jessica latched on to me so she could verbalize every single thought running through her head. She grilled me about Jasper and his perspective of the aftermath that was rejecting Lauren-freaking-Mallory's invitation to the spring dance, to which I responded, " _What_? I had no idea he said no! How could he?" which made Jessica launch into an entire monologue about how stupid high school boys were.

Bella was a sporadic mess – even more so than usual. We were playing basketball this week and we were on different teams, but she somehow managed to distract everyone in class because we'd hear her fall at _least_ every fifteen minutes across the gym.

As soon as the class was over, she rushed to change and pack her things, leaving me to stumble after her as she practically marched to her truck.

"Okay," I said when I finally caught up with her. "Do I even _want_ to know what happened today, or –"

"Not here," Bella said icily, making my eyes widen.

In the entire span I'd known Bella Swan (which was most of my life), I'd never seen her this mad. I decided I wouldn't push it. She already said she didn't want to talk at school, which meant she was definitely going to tell me later – I would be sure of that. I didn't know if I was excited or terrified of the new Bella. She looked absolutely _lethal_.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't love it, though.

As we approached her truck, we were surprised to see Eric Yorkie leaning against it. "Hey, Eric!" Bella called politely, but I could hear a cold edge in her voice.

"Hi, Bella," Eric returned, then nodded to me. "Hey, Blaire."

"What's up?" I asked when we reached the truck. Bella started for the driver's side to unlock her door with Eric hanging beside her, hunched and nervous. When I noticed that, I paused, standing just behind the newly repaired tailgate of Bella's truck.

"Um, well, I actually wanted to ask Bella something," he said. I frowned. Bella looked over her shoulder.

"Yes?" She asked.

Eric looked between us before letting out a deep breath. Then he squared his shoulders. "Well, uh, I was wondering… if you would go to the spring dance with me?"

Okay, this was awkward. I had nowhere to turn, either, since Bella was my ride home. So I pretended to distract myself by watching students filter out of Forks High.

"I thought it was girls' choice," Bella said.

"Well… yeah…"

Oh God, how did the conversation get ten times worse in the span of _ten seconds_? I tried really hard to pretend I wasn't hearing every single word, desperately trying to find a familiar face in the crowd to go talk to them, but no one was around. Of course.

"Thank you for asking me, but I'm going to be in Seattle that day," Bella finally said, trying to be gentle, even though she wasn't really doing that great of a job at it.

"Oh… Well, maybe next time."

Eric made a quick getaway after that. I whirled on Bella, eyes wide. "What the hell was _that_?" I demanded.

She rolled her eyes and yanked her car door open before flinging her backpack inside. "This is unbelievable," she said crossly. "First Mike, now Eric –"

"Wait, wait, wait," I said, opening my unlocked door to throw my backpack in as well. " _Mike_ asked you too? What the hell? You should take it as a compliment, even if it's kind of weird that these guys are asking you when it should be the girl's choice, but _still_!"

"No way," she said. "Today has already been horrible enough."

"Of course you would think that," I said. "But I guess I don't blame you either. But I'm actually kind of jealous. I'm new too, why doesn't anyone ask me?"

She scoffed, but gave me a wry smirk that let me know I was improving her mood. "Maybe it's because all the boys are scared of you."

"Or maybe it's because they don't know how to handle a real woman."

I jumped at the familiar drawl and whirled around, surprised to see both Edward Cullen and Jasper Hale walking past Bella's truck. My eyes widened when I realized those words actually came out of _Jasper Hale's mouth_ and were framed with a cocky smirk directed right at _me_.

Again, I almost confused my entire reason for living because of that smirk. "Well – I, uh – _I_ – Very funny, _Hale_ –"

I couldn't get the words out fast enough. They already passed us and were opening their doors to the Volvo. All I could do was stare at Jasper Hale, who looked a little too amused for his own good, even while his adopted brother looked pissed and glared daggers at him. "Who said I was joking?" He asked.

Then he _winked_.

My brain short-circuited.

I quickly ducked into Bella's truck before I could do anything moronic, slamming the door behind me. Bella did the same.

"What the hell was _that_?" Bella demanded.

"I have _no_ idea," I said, "but we need to leave. _Now_."

Bella didn't have to be told twice. She already had the car started and backed out –

But then the Volvo pulled out too and trapped us in the parking lot's aisle. I dropped my face in my hands with a groan while Bella cursed.

 _Knock, knock, knock!_

I jumped with a strangled yelp and looked out my window, scrunching up my nose when I saw Tyler's face just outside. He smiled and waved, then pointed down. I unrolled the window.

"Geez, Blaire, are you okay?" He asked. "You look like you're about to pass out or something."

"I'm fantastic, Tyler, thanks for asking," I said, pulling my wits together. There was no way in hell that some _boy_ , even if he was _Jasper Hale_ , was going to keep me speechless for long. "Next time you say hi to me, maybe you could go for a different start instead of saying I look _sick_."

"Right, sorry about that," he said, smiling sheepishly. "I just wanted to ask you a quick question while you guys were stuck behind the Cullens."

Was this seriously real life? "Uh, are you trying to ask Bella something or –"

"No. Would you ask me to the spring dance?" He asked.

" _What_?" I squawked. "What is _up_ with you people? I thought this was the girls' choice –"

"Well, if it was the guys' choice, I'd ask you," he said, as if that were somehow reassuring. "But I thought it'd be cool if we went together. I've been trying to find a way to make it up to you since the accident –"

"So you _agreeing_ to go with me to some dance is going to solve everything?" I snapped. "Screw that – and screw _you_ for even thinking that was a good idea! I don't even want to go to this stupid dance anymore. I'm going to Seattle with Bella. God, get me _out_ of this conversation!"

I leaned across Bella and jammed my hand into the center of the steering wheel, forcing out a loud, _long_ honk from the poor truck.

"All right, all right, Jesus," Tyler said with an exasperated laugh. "Maybe you'll be in a better mood when prom comes around."

" _What_?" I practically shrieked.

The Volvo finally sped off. Bella forced the truck to accelerate out of the parking lot before I could storm after Tyler Crowley. I groaned again. "What the fuck is up with this _school_?"

 **V**

* * *

Well, well, WELL?! How was this chapter?! Let me know!

On a more personal note, I have some exciting news! As probably (maybe, idk) a few of you know, I also write original works outside of fanfiction. I recently entered one of my novels in a competition and won! So I'm super stoked about that.

Anyways, back to _RAVAGE_. Are you guys pumped for the action ahead? Things are only going to get crazier from here! I'll see you with another update soon!

Have a great day!


	13. SPANISH

Happy Eclipse day! To everyone that saw it today, that is. I decided a new chapter of _RAVAGE_ would be a perfect way to celebrate!

If I thought you guys weren't ready for the last chapter, you're definitely not ready for this one!

Muwahahaha!

* * *

 **11\. SPANISH**

Bella pretty much ordered me to stay over at her house for dinner that evening. I didn't mind because she was making enchiladas, but also because she unloaded on me as soon as we walked through the front door. Apparently Edward Cullen talked to her for the first time in a month, just to let her know they couldn't be friends. I was pretty sure it was just as douche-y and weird to deal with it firsthand as it was to hear about it a second time.

"Oh my God," Bella suddenly said, freezing in place in the middle of her kitchen. I frowned. "What if he knows how totally absorbed I am by him. What if he said that because he doesn't want to lead me on – because he's not even interested in me at all!"

"Doubtful," I said, trying to ignore the fact that she finally admitted her obsession with the Cullen boy. "If that was the case, he wouldn't even talk to you at all."

"Doubtful," she mimicked. "Edward isn't like that. He wouldn't just... just... Just forget it. He just won't have to worry about me, then. I'll finish school here and then get a scholarship to a college in the south – or Hawaii – that way he'll never see me again and I won't ever see this state again."

"Oh come on, Bell. Forks isn't that bad. What if you went to Stanford? That's where I want to go. They've got one of the best soccer programs in the country and it's in California. Sun and soccer, what more could we ask for?"

"Stanford…" she mused aloud. "Maybe."

It was as close to yes as I was going to get until senior year, I was sure.

 **V**

I had two favorite days: practice days and game days.

Those days were what my world revolved around, what I waited every week for. On those days, I always woke up in a good mood and with a sense of purpose. It wore off on everyone around me, even Bella, on our drive to school.

That didn't happen this morning.

Today's drive was terribly quiet, just like it had been during my first week at Forks High School. What made things worse was that the silences were caused by the same person. I knew Bella was a lot more put out by Edward Cullen than she wanted to let on and it was kind of depressing to watch. I almost wanted to call her out on it – I had no idea how anyone could be _this_ hung up over anybody – but then again, I also learned that this was Bella's first actual crush. Everyone was a little crazy when they went through that stage, right? Surely I could cut her some slack.

She parked as far away from the school's entrance as possible, a few rows away from where the van hit the truck. Chills skittered up my spine at the sight of the spot. It'd been cleaned up and looked just like any other, but for some reason, I still felt wary.

I clambered out of the car, struggling with carrying two bags today: my backpack and gym duffel. It was always clunky and awkward and threw me off balance, but I was a trooper and I knew the frustration of carrying it would end as soon as I made it to my gym locker. On the other side of the truck I heard Bella fumble and curse, then a soft jingling sound. I looked over at her and my eyes widened.

Edward Cullen was standing in front of her, holding her keys out to her. When the hell did he get there? I didn't even see him or hear him walk up –

"How the hell do you do that?" Bella asked, her jaw clenched in frustration.

That was a great question.

Edward smirked before his gaze drifted over to me. He gave me a flat, somewhat condescending look that made me frown. I adjusted my duffel bag further up my shoulder and didn't say anything. Maybe he just had resting asshole face or something. He looked back at Bella before I could comment on it.

"Do what?" He asked, dropping Bella's keys in her hand.

In the span of a few seconds, Bella had that cold look on her face from yesterday. "Just… Just _appear_ out of thin air," she said.

"Bella, it's not my fault if you are exceptionally unobservant," he replied.

It took me maybe a millisecond to understand what he said (early mornings did that to people), but when I caught up, my eyes narrowed. Now I understood why Bella didn't like this guy.

"What the hell?" I demanded. "I didn't even see you show up, either, asshole. You just surprised us. There's no need to be such a jerk about it."

"And what was up with the traffic jam last night?" Bella asked, seeming to regain her courage from my irritation. "I thought you were supposed to be pretending I don't exist, not irritating me to death."

Edward turned to me. "That was for Tyler's sake, not mine," he said. "Or, perhaps not even Tyler's –"

"I had to give him his chance," a second male voice drawled. I turned to my left, pitifully trying to ignore the way my heartrate spiked as Jasper Hale walked toward us. He was sporting that familiar smirk that almost derailed my train of thought. "I thought it would be fair, especially after you practically forced Lauren Mallory on me yesterday."

I spluttered. How the hell did he –

"I – I didn't _force_ anyone to do anything," I finally said. "I didn't mean anything by it –"

"Of course," Jasper agreed easily as he stood in front of me. His words didn't mollify me in the least. "Just like I meant nothing by telling Tyler Crowley he should do the same and ask you to the dance. Or... ask you to ask him, I suppose."

" _That's_ why you were laughing yesterday," Bella accused.

I glared at Jasper now. "You're an asshole," I ground out. "Both of you are."

"You wound me," Jasper said, but the flatness of his words and the wicked look that glinted in his eyes as he smiled let me know I did no such thing.

"Something tells me you'll survive." I pulled my gym bag back up my shoulder when it started to slip again.

"So you're trying to irritate us to death?" Bella asked, her focus still intent on Edward's severe expression. "Since Tyler's van didn't do the job?"

Jasper frowned while Edward glared at her. "Bella, you are utterly absurd," he said.

"And you're a dick," I shot back. "Who the hell even says _absurd_ these days? Why don't you do everyone a favor and catch up on today's vernacular? Come on, Bella, let's go to class."

Bella shoved her way past Edward to join my side. When we started walking, I almost tripped over my gym bag when it bounced off my side and crossed in front of my legs. I mumbled out a curse and shifted the gym bag to the side again. So much for a smooth getaway –

"Wait," Edward Cullen said before he and his brother made their way to either side of us. "I'm sorry, that was rude."

I glared at him across Bella, but before I could say anything, I felt a weight disappear from my shoulder. I looked over to my left again, frowning at the way Jasper Hale threw _my_ gym bag over _his_ shoulder like it weighed absolutely nothing. It wasn't that heavy to begin with, but still. He looked at Bella and I apologetically. "You'll have to forgive my socially inept brother," Jasper explained. "Emmett and I believe he was dropped on his head. He isn't… good with people."

I scoffed. "That's an understatement. And you're not entirely forgiven either. Give me my bag –"

I reached out for it, but Jasper easily shrugged out of the way before moving the bag to his other shoulder, putting it further away from me.

"Allow me to make up for it," he said. "I can walk you to your gym locker –"

"I can handle it," I said.

He smiled, which maybe turned the world on its axis for _two seconds_. The expression made him look radiant. I wondered why he didn't smile more. "I know," he said. "But I do feel terrible about yesterday – I realize now how petty it was."

I scoffed at him. "If you think carrying my bag to some locker is going to make me forgive you, you've got another thing coming, _Hale_ –"

"Trust me, _Holcomb_ , I'm aware," he said. I ignored the thrill that raced up my spine when he used my last name. "I think everyone at Forks High knows it will take more than simple gestures to get back into your good graces, but I'm willing to work for it."

I rolled my eyes. "And how do you think you'll manage that?"

"Well, that brings us to this. We wanted to ask you something," Edward said, but his gaze was still on Bella, who was busy glaring at her own shoes to notice the smile on his face. I was glad she wasn't letting him off easy. He chuckled. "But you sidetracked me."

"Do you have a multiple personality disorder?" Bella asked.

Jasper laughed. Edward looked exasperated. I snorted. Get him, Bella. "You're doing it again," he said.

"Fine," she replied. "What do you want to ask?"

I was curious too. "Well," Edward began. "I was wondering if, a week from Saturday – you know, the day of the spring dance –"

The horror on Bella's face was almost hysterical. "Are you trying to be funny?"

"Will you please allow me to finish?" He asked, smirking.

"Yes, please do, for what's left of our remaining sanity," Jasper said. I bit the inside of my cheek to hide my smile.

"I heard you say you were going to Seattle that day –"

"And I heard you scream it at Tyler Crowley," Jasper added, sounding way too amused for his own good. He smiled apologetically when I glared at him.

"– And we were wondering if you wanted a ride," Edward finally finished.

I frowned.

"What?" Bella demanded.

"Do you want a ride to Seattle?" Edward repeated.

"With who?" She asked. I casually pushed my hair back, hoping it would hide my total exasperation.

"Myself, obviously," Edward replied. "And Jasper, if you wanted to come as well, Blaire."

"Oh," I said, carefully avoiding Jasper's eyes. "Uh… Why?"

"We were planning on going to Seattle in the next few weeks anyway," Jasper replied. "I thought it would be a better alternative than a dance. Edward doesn't think Bella's truck can make it, either."

"My truck works just fine, thank you very much for your concern," Bella said and started walking faster. I wanted to catch up with her, but then I remembered my duffel bag and looked back at Jasper.

"I need my gym bag," I said.

"But can your truck make it there on one tank of gas?" Edward asked as we caught up with Bella. Jasper refused to acknowledge me.

"I don't see how that is _any_ of your business," Bella quipped back.

I slowed my pace so Jasper Hale would walk a little ahead of me. He noticed me do this out of the corner of his eye.

"The wasting of finite resources is everyone's business," Edward replied.

I launched around Jasper's back and lunged for the strap of my bag again. In the same instant, Jasper had my bag on his other shoulder and his free arm locked around my shoulders, pulling me flush into his side.

Jasper Hale's body was surprisingly cold. I could tell because every line of my body was pressed against his. I could especially feel it when the side of my face brushed the soft material of his thermal shirt. But as goosebumps formed on my skin, I didn't think it was from his temperature. I think it mainly came from the fact that my body reacted similarly to the time I stuck a fork in an electrical socket when I was three, except better, and worse, and every emotion in between.

I saw Bella's shocked expression first, then Edward's – who looked like he was on the verge of panicking. It set off alarms in my head and made me panic too.

I tried to shove out of Jasper's hold, but it was impossible. His grip on me was like iron. I was suddenly taken back to the accident, where Jasper's black eyes glared at me – hollow and emotionless and terrifying beyond comprehension. I gripped his shirt mercilessly – I was sure my nails scratched against his skin – as I struggled and realized I was beginning to fight for air.

"Blaire?" Jasper asked, his voice cutting through my panic.

I ripped myself out of his hold and almost fell back on my ass, but two white hands gripped my arms and pulled me upright. "Blaire, look at me."

I looked up and almost sobbed in relief. Jasper Hale himself was looking at me, but his face wasn't twisted in that demonic rage I saw from the accident. Instead his eyes were light brownish and most importantly, they were soft.

How could I have been so afraid of him for so long?

"I…" I breathed. "I'm good. I'm good."

"Are you sure?" He asked. "I'm sorry if I startled you. I wasn't thinking, you moved quicker than I expected –"

"It's okay," I said as I fought for composure. "You just surprised me, that's all."

He slowly pulled away, deliberately, as I pulled myself together. I looked helplessly at Bella, whose face was like an open book with a million questions running across her eyes. I shrugged.

"Um, so Seattle?" I asked, hoping to change the conversation.

Bella looked between Edward and I. I think if it were possible for people to turn into putty under a single look, it was definitely happening for Bella when she looked at Edward. "Um…" she said. "I… I guess."

A small smile flashed across Edward's face, but it disappeared as soon as he looked at Jasper. "We should go," he said. "Class will be starting soon."

Jasper nodded, sending me an unreadable look before letting the gym bag slip off his shoulder –

"You – You sad you'd take that to my gym locker," I said weakly. "Remember?"

Then he smiled. It was a smaller smile than before, more reproachful, but it filled me with butterflies. It was soft and joyous. "Of course."

The walk to the gym was awkwardly quiet. We cut through buildings and across rotundas and I tried to ignore the stares I was getting from the students. But I was also a little too busy to care, as I was partly more focused on trying to keep up with Jasper Hale. With his height came a faster walk. Every stride he took I had to make two just to keep up. The other part of me was trying to be covert in checking him out.

Jasper was bulkier than Edward, but not as bulky as Emmett. He was broad and well-muscled, if the tightness of his thermal shirt stretching over his body was any indication. And those were just his arms and shoulders. I was pretty sure when I was pushing away from him in the parking lot, my hands glided over some killer abs –

"How long have you been playing soccer?" Jasper asked, glancing down at me. I really hoped my face wasn't turning red.

"Since I could walk, honestly," I said, staring determinedly at anything else as we walked. "Maybe before. My parents loved watching it, so when I showed interest they signed me up for little league."

"You have a real passion for it," Jasper said.

"Yes," I agreed. "Um… so you said you watched a lot of sports. Do you play any?"

"Baseball," he said.

"That's my second favorite," I said. "I would play softball if I could, but I was always worried it would conflict with my soccer schedule. I'm constantly training. Do you play for the school?"

I looked up at Jasper just in time to catch his shrug. "No," he said with a smile on his face like he was in on some private joke. "I play for a… a more local team."

I frowned. "Like a club?"

"Something like that."

"Oh," I said, wondering why he was trying to be so cryptic. I didn't ask, though, since we were almost at the girl's locker room. "Maybe I could see one of your games or something."

"That would be nice," he said. I smiled at him as he finally handed me my gym bag.

"Well, thanks for carrying my bag," I said, quickly realizing our time together was ending. "I guess I'll see you in history."

He frowned. "Not lunch?"

My heart fluttered at the simple question. Did that mean he noticed me as much as I noticed him? I really hoped so.

"I would, but I need to study," I said. "Spanish is kind of kicking my ass right now."

"Do you need a tutor?"

I pulled the gym bag's strap further up my shoulder. "I mean, probably. I'm terrible. Bella and Jessica aren't much help –"

"I could help you," he suggested.

"Are you in Spanish too?" I asked.

He shrugged and gave me another one of my favorite small smiles. "No," he admitted. "But I used to need to know it."

Why would a teenager need to know Spanish? Was it just a Texas thing or something? "Prove it," I said.

He sighed, but the smile didn't disappear. " _Qué quieres que diga?_ "

Well, crap.

I wasn't exactly sure what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn't _that_. I wasn't expecting the tenor of his voice to drop and the smoothness of it to be so overwhelming. I expected whatever words he knew to be choppy and weighted down with his drawl, but he was articulate. Precise. My fingers tightened around the strap of my gym bag. I swallowed. "Oh, okay, well uh –"

" _Porque diría cualquier cosa, querida_ ," he said. His smile turned a little harder, edgier, as he continued. " _Cualquier cosa y todo, siempre que te haga sentir como lo haces ahora mismo._ "

I was dangerously close to slumping against the wall just to catch my breath. Was it getting hot in here, or was it just me? Or maybe it was just Jasper Hale, whose voice could turn from attractive to downright sexy in a matter of seconds and languages – which apparently he knew fluently.

The air thickened as I regarded him. He seemed to do much the same to me. I thought about how empty the hallway was, then how empty the girls' locker room was. I wondered how easy it would be to ask him in, how easy it would be to just to drop everything and _jump_ him. He was so tall, I would gladly climb him like a tree –

Then the first period bell rang. The long, droning noise was as effective as a bucket of ice water.

"Oh shit," I said, stepping backwards, fumbling for the door handle. "God, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you late – the, um, tutoring thing works, if you still want to –"

"Trust me, I want to," Jasper said. The usual gravel in his voice was back. Wait, I thought the Spanish was sexier before? Or had it been English all along?

"Oh, okay," I said. I stepped backwards and fumbled for the door handle to the girls' locker room, unable to look away from him just yet. "Great. I-uh, that works, um – the tutoring thing –"

"You have Spanish before lunch, right?" He asked. "With _Señora_ Groff?"

My stomach was flopping all over the place. I felt like I was on another roller coaster. How did he know that? "Um… yes?"

He nodded. "I'll meet you there. We can walk to the library together."

"Oh… Okay," I said as my hand finally connected with the door handle. Thank God. "Great."

He smirked. "You said that already."

Did I? I was more focused on the way his arms folded across his chest. I swallowed. "Oh… right…"

"I'll see you after third period, Blaire."

Jasper was the first one to turn around and walk away, effectively breaking the spell between us. I flung the door open to the locker room and practically ran inside, almost tripping over my gym bag in a rush to shove the stupid thing in my locker.

I couldn't even believe what happened. What the hell even _was_ that? I wasn't the type of girl that thought about _jumping_ or _climbing_ anyone, let alone actually thought about _trying_ it –

How was I supposed to make it through this tutoring thing?

How the hell was I supposed to go to _Seattle_ with him?

 **V**

* * *

Well? Well? WELL? WHAT DO YOU THINK?!

Seriously, I'm DYING TO KNOW!

Comments seriously make my day! And also make me update faster! When I don't have adult or writing responsibilities, of course.

Have a great day!


	14. THEORY

You GUYS! Seriously, these comments have me DYING! I'm in love, you all are super stars!

Hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

 **12\. THEORY**

I spent the first half of my day wallowing in abject horror. It started off horribly when I stumbled into first period, English, hopelessly late with Mister Mason threatening detention if it ever happened again. I ignored the probing looks I received from students as I hustled toward my seat and dropped down next to Bella in the back of the class. She stared at me questioningly, trying to get me to look at her, but I already had my text book out in front of me, content with staring right through its thick lacquered pages until the end of class.

Second period was worse, or maybe it was better, but I wasn't sure. At least I wasn't late, but it only put me closer to Spanish class. And then _lunch_.

When I finally made it to Spanish, I was numb. I could hardly tell if I was shaking from excitement or dread. As I slumped into my seat, I was partially glad I was getting a tutor, since there was no way I'd be able to focus in class now, thanks to Jasper Hale. But maybe it didn't help that Jasper Hale was _also_ my tutor.

I realized either way I was _doomed_.

Jessica Stanley pounced on me as soon as she walked in the door. She sat at the desk in front of me, which didn't belong to her, and she stared at me. "Oh. My. _God_ ," she said. "I've been _dying_ to talk to you all day. What the hell is going on between you and Jasper _Hale_?"

 _I don't know!_ I wanted to wail the phrase, but somehow I remained neutral. Or maybe I was just still in shock. I blinked at her. "Uh… nothing?"

She smiled deviously. "Liar. I totally saw you guys this morning, the whole _school_ did. I can't believe he carried your _bag_ for you, that's seriously so adorable. Are you going to ask him to the dance –?"

"He doesn't do dances," I said, relieved I was able to get a few words in edgewise.

It only spurred her on. "He doesn't – Well, that kind of sucks, but you had other plans anyway, right? Bella said you were going to Seattle with her? Are you sure you can't push that back? It would've been fun for us all to go together."

As much fun as a dance sounded, going to Seattle with Bella and Jasper Hale sounded infinitely more appealing. But Jessica didn't have to know that. Usually, I could handle her pushiness, but today I was rattled, unfocused –

"Bella!" Jessica called, flagging down my best friend as soon as she stepped in the classroom. "Blaire refuses to give me the details, but you can! What's going on with her and Jasper?"

"I… didn't really know anything was going on," Bella said as she awkwardly stood beside my desk. "Was that why you were late to first period?"

Oh God. My eyes widened and I was positive my face was turning beet red at the accusation. " _What_? No! _Bella_ –"

"What?" Bella quickly backtracked. " _Oh_! No, I didn't mean it like _that_ –"

" _Blaire_!" Jessica's eyes got impossibly wide. "You were late to first period because of Jasper _Hale_ –"

"Nothing happened!" I cried.

But it was too late. The damage had been done and now I had a scandal to worry about, if I went by Jessica's Cheshire-grin. Before I could shut any ideas down, the bell rang. It forced Jessica and Bella in their assigned seats across the room. I groaned.

Spanish passed by sluggishly and I didn't remember a single word of the lecture. Instead I found myself watching the clock, waiting for the bell to ring, wondering how I was going to actually survive lunch. I debated on whether or not to call the whole thing off. Honestly, the last thing I needed was some _boy_ trying to get in my head when I had soccer, school, and most importantly convincing my mom to stay in Forks to worry about.

The bell rang too soon.

More dread settled in my stomach and stayed there like a lead weight.

I slowly gathered my belongings, faintly hearing the ringing in my ears as my heart raced. Jessica hopped in front of my desk with a brilliant grin. Bella stumbled behind her, worry etched on her face. "I'm so sorry –" she started out.

"So, what happened before first period?" Jessica asked as I stood up and slung my backpack over one shoulder.

" _Nothing_ ," I said sharply, grabbing my Spanish book off the desk. "He walked me to my gym locker, we had a conversation, he offered to tutor me in Spanish during lunch today, that's _it_ –"

" _What_?"

Even Bella's eyes were wide at that one.

Oh crap.

"Look, I really don't know what's going on," I said. "I don't think anything is. He sits in front of me during history and we've only had a handful of conversations. He helped me with my gym bag because he saw I was tripping over it in the parking lot – you know how awkward that thing is to carry – just… please chill out? I've got enough on my plate as it is."

She frowned. "I'm sorry, Blaire, I didn't even think about it. When my parents divorced, I was a wreck too."

I frowned. "Oh man, Jess, I'm so sorry. I had no idea –"

She shrugged. "It's not a big deal anymore," she said. "It gets better."

I smiled. "I hope so. Thanks."

She smiled kindly followed me out of class. "But, just so you know, this doesn't get you out of telling me what you and Jasper Hale are doing," she said as I stepped through the threshold of the classroom. I turned to laugh at her, already feeling lighter about the situation. "Because if you guys are getting hot and heavy in the locker room, you totally can't keep that to yourself –"

"Shut up!" Bella hissed. Jessica stopped talking and she turned a shade paler before her cheeks burst into small red patches. I slowly turned around and the weight in my stomach returned.

Jasper Hale leaned against the wall across my Spanish class. He was smirking at me.

I suddenly had a violent urge to spin around and shake Jessica Stanley. I wanted to scream, " _TRAITOR! HOW COULD YOU NOT SEE HIM?!_ " too. Instead, I plastered on a fake smile and hoped against hope that he didn't hear what she said.

"Uh, hey!" I said as I walked toward him. "Do you still want to do this… uh, thing?"

Wow. I was _so_ smooth.

It only seemed to make Jasper's smirk grow wider. "Absolutely," he said. He reached out and pulled my thin Spanish book and spiral notebook out of my hands before tucking them under one of his muscled arms. Arms I was definitely _not_ checking out or anything. "We should hurry so you can have something to tell Jessica in gym."

Jessica spluttered behind us. I couldn't stop the laughter bubbling out of me. I reached out to try and shove him with one hand, but he didn't even budge. Weird, but then again, Jasper Hale was built from something a little tougher than the other boys at Forks High, it seemed. "Please don't encourage her," I said before waving off Jessica and Bella. "I'll see you guys in gym."

Jasper already started walking toward the library, leaving me to catch up. "You know, I _can_ carry my own books," I said, frowning at the way he held my belongings like he owned them. Why was he carrying all of my stuff to begin with?

"I know," he said. "But like I said earlier, I'm trying to make up for the… what did Bella call it? The traffic jam yesterday."

"I thought the gym bag thing made up for it," I said.

"For a normal person, I'm sure it would have," he replied, smirking at me. "But you have an exceptional temper and an even more exceptional capacity to hold a grudge. I just want to cover all my bases."

I gaped at him. "I do _not_ –"

Jasper chuckled, cutting me off. "You do. Truly, it's almost impressive."

I frowned at him. Sexy Spanish? Obviously that didn't outweigh the fact that he could be a jerk. "Maybe it also doesn't help that you're bad at apologizing."

"Maybe," he agreed. "I haven't had much practice."

I scoffed. "So what? Does that mean you don't say sorry to people?"

"I've never found the need."

Now that I could believe. I always knew the kind of attractiveness the Cullens and Hales had was sure to come with its own cockiness, but it turned out Jasper Hale had something more than that. He had pure confidence – a sort of self-assuredness that I didn't think could exist in a typical high school student. I saw it in every stride he took, every action he made, in every word he spoke. He did everything with _intent_.

For the first time in my life, I was actually kind of intimidated by another person.

But he didn't need to know that. I tightened the straps on my backpack and tried to ignore the stares of the other students. Jasper pushed the door leading out of the building and let me out first. Cold air hit both of us in a gust, stirring up my hair and my unzipped jacket. I bundled it closer to me and turned to head down the walkway that would take us to the library.

"Don't you want something to eat?" Jasper asked.

Ha! _Me_ , eat _alone_ , in front of Jasper _Hale_? Yeah right.

"I'm, uh, not that hungry," I lied. "I can just meet you at the library if you want anything."

Jasper rolled his eyes. "You have practice today, Blaire. You need something."

How did he even know what days I had practice? How did he even know this much about me to begin with? Why did he always have to have a point?

I said nothing, I didn't even have to look at Jasper to know he was smiling when I rolled my eyes and walked toward the cafeteria. Walking through the lunch line was awkward because I was more concerned with the hyper-awareness that came from Jasper Hale standing only a few inches behind me than actual food. I picked up an apple and a bottle of water, deciding that was going to be satisfying enough, especially since my stomach was doing the weird flipping-flopping thing all over again that only ever happened when a certain blond boy was on my radar.

"I think your friends are upset with my brother and I," Jasper suddenly said, his voice low and soft next to my ear. I gasped when I felt his cool breath fan past my ear and across my cheek, smelling like sharp spearmint. I jumped and the apple slipped out of my hands, before turning around to face Jasper.

He leaned over me, his face insanely close to mine, closer than I think he'd ever been before. I frowned at the sudden proximity, but he was straightening up before I could question it. As he did, I saw my apple in his hand, holding it out to me. Huh, good reflexes. I snatched it away from him. "What makes you say that?" I asked.

Jasper shrugged, then jerked his head toward the tables in the cafeteria. "I'm stealing you away for a tutoring session, Edward has stolen Bella away for lunch –"

" _What_?" I whipped around, following his nod, my eyes widening in surprise when sure enough, Edward Cullen and Bella Swan were sitting at their very own table. They almost looked like they were in their own little world. I frowned. "Oh, great."

Jasper chuckled as we made our way through the rest of the line. "You don't like him," he said as we walked to the library. It wasn't a question, but somehow I felt like I needed to answer it.

"I don't like the way he's treating my best friend," I said. "Bella's a good person – too good. She doesn't deserve to be jerked around."

"I agree," Jasper said, once again holding the library door open for me. "And so does Edward. He's just…"

"Just what?" I asked as we walked inside. The library smelled like old books and rain, the air was thick and quiet. It was a nice change from the constant clamor of the cafeteria.

Once we settled at a table, I finally looked at Jasper. He smiled ruefully at me before gracefully sinking into his chair. I sat across from him. "He's complicated," he said. "Edward worries befriending Bella won't lead to anything good. And it won't. In fact, it's dangerous –"

"Dangerous?"

Jasper opened my Spanish book to the current chapter my class was working on – how he knew what that was, I had no idea. "Yes," he admitted, quietly. His voice was soft but dark. The singular word sounded like a threat wrapped up in silk.

It didn't exactly surprise me. From the minute I laid eyes on them, I knew the Cullen family was different. I knew there was something _off_ about them. It was their beauty and the brilliance of Doctor Cullen that made them a paradox, made me question why they would ever live in such a small, drab town. The fact that Jasper said himself associating with the family was dangerous only enhanced my theory.

On instinct, my muscles tensed, just like they used to whenever I greeted Jasper in history. But I wasn't afraid. If anything, for some reason, I almost felt ready to face the complicated emotions I felt for Jasper Hale head on. I was excited.

When Jasper looked up at me, I didn't look away, even as he pinned me with one of his calculating looks. This time, it didn't seem to lead to anything disappointing. If anything, it led to something that… troubled him. He frowned and looked back down at the text book. "I worry much the same," he said.

"Why?" I asked quietly. "What's so dangerous about you and your family?"

"I'm almost surprised you haven't figured it out yet," he said.

I licked my lips, staring at him even if he wasn't looking at me. "I have a theory," I admitted. "But… I'm afraid of being right."

His eyes slowly turned upward. "Why don't we test it, then?"

Was he serious? The question was immediately answered when I saw the steadiness of his gaze.

I took a deep breath and glanced around the library. It was entirely empty except for a woman working at the desk near the front of the room. Resigning myself to my fate, I leaned closer to Jasper, finding him doing much the same.

"Witness protection," I said.

The wicked smirk working its way across Jasper Hale's face let me know I was dead wrong. We both leaned back almost at the same time. "What a rational guess," he said, almost as if he were surprised.

I shrugged. "That was my theory and I'm not going to pry anymore. Now, were you serious about being my Spanish tutor? Because I really do need to focus on that."

Jasper smirked. " _Entonces comencemos_ ," he said. Oh crap, sexy Spanish was definitely better than English. " _Prometo no dejar que mis emociones sacan lo mejor de mí esta vez._ "

This boy would probably be the death of me.

 **V**

Being tutored in Spanish by Jasper Hale was actually the world's most frustrating and helpful experience at the same time. Helpful because I actually learned something within the span of thirty minutes, and beyond frustrating because I actually _learned_ something within the span of thirty minutes. I may or may not have actually wanted to give Jessica Stanley something to talk about in gym.

I was relieved when it was over, but I still had to survive the walk to history with Jasper at my side, still carrying my books. We still got stares from the other students, but they weren't as bad as earlier this morning. As always, Jasper didn't seem to care. In fact, it didn't even seem like he noticed the attention. I really didn't know how he could do that.

It didn't help that everyone in our history class openly ogled us either. As I shrank into my seat, Jasper set my books on my desk before he sat down as well, still looking perfectly indifferent.

Mister Apell droned on shortly after that. His words were monotonous in their detail to the end of World War I.

"Like every end to a section, we're going to end with an essay," Mister Apell said. "But since I know most of you are struggling with finishing the year strong, I'm going to throw you a buoy by letting you partner up on this particular assignment."

Relieved sighs came from all around.

"Don't get too excited," Mister Apell said with a wry smirk on his face. "I'll be choosing your partners."

The class fell silent again. The teacher started rattling off names in the class, starting with the people whose last names started with _A_ and moving down the list. I felt myself vibrating in my seat with anticipation, wondering, hoping against hope –

"Hale and Holcomb."

I fought the excitement down as best I could, but by the time class ended and Jasper turned around in his seat to face me, my stomach erupted into butterflies. He had one of his signature small smiles on his face. I smiled back.

"I promise I know my history better than Spanish," I said. "This essay's going to be a piece of cake."

"Oh good," he said as we stood up and walked out of the classroom. "I was worried I would have to carry the team."

A small thrill went through me at the thought of Jasper and I being a team, but he didn't need to know that. I smacked him with my Spanish book.

"Blaire, Jazz!" I frowned at the light, tinkling voice that shot clearly over the chatter of the other students. Jasper and I paused to turn around.

Alice Cullen wove her way through the crowd, looking vibrant amongst the other students at Forks High in a bright yellow sundress accented with black stockings and black pointed flats. She wore an olive green shrug over her shoulders that accented her tiny waist. Her short hair was slicked down in a style that reminded me of 1920s flapper girls. She smiled brightly when we looked at her.

"Hey, Alice," Jasper said when she walked up to us.

"Hello," she returned cheerily, but her gaze was fixed on me. "So, first of all, I'm sorry I never gave you that list of stores. _Someone_ thought I was moving too fast."

"What?" I looked up at Jasper and frowned, a little bewildered. "Seriously?"

Jasper already looked exasperated. "It's not what –"

"It's not what?" I asked. "Why are you telling your sister she can't talk to me? What does he mean by too fast?"

Alice shrugged. "Beats me," she said innocently. "Jazz, care to enlighten us?"

"Yeah, _Jazz_ ," I said, turning back to him. "Care to share?"

Jasper had taken a step backwards, which literally put his back against the wall behind him. His eyes flickered between us and I could tell a smile threatened to break across his stunning features. "God help me," he said. "Why don't we change the subject –?"

"Great, I'll start," I said before looking back at Alice. "I don't want a list anymore because I want to go _shopping_ with you."

Alice looked like I made the announcement of the _century_. "You're my favorite," she said.

"You're going to regret that," Jasper said before I could ask what she meant by the strange comment. "Alice treats shopping like an Olympic event. Anyway, what was it that you needed to tell us?"

"Well, it was mainly to tell Blaire Edward had to take Bella home early from school," Alice said, snapping out of her daze. "Apparently she fainted in biology. Something about blood testing?"

"Oh great," I said, running a hand through my hair. "That sounds about right – Bella is so queasy it's almost hilarious. She threw up once because I scraped my knee when we were ten. Is she okay?"

"Yes," she replied. "She just didn't think she could make it through gym class, so Edward offered to take her home."

"That was nice of him. She can't survive gym on an average day, her being sick wouldn't make things any better – oh shit, wait. I have soccer practice today. She was supposed to pick me up. My mom had to go see her class in Seattle and my uncle is back in Mason County and they won't be home until _late_."

My thoughts were frantic. I didn't know if I could find anyone who would be able to pick me up after practice. I doubted I would be able to find a ride home, period, since a lot of the students Bella and I associated with didn't live very close to the school, and it wasn't like I could just _skip practice_. I could call Waylon to see if he could leave work and pick me up, but that wouldn't be fair, he was under so much stress lately. I could always just walk home –

A sharp gasp came from Alice. Her eyes were wide – I was startled by how terrified she actually looked. " _No_!"

I frowned. "What's wrong? Are you okay –"

"I can take you," Jasper said, but he wasn't even looking at me. His gaze was trained on Alice. That cold, calculating look was back in his eyes, icing over his features. All traces of humor were gone.

"Wait, what?" I asked. "No. I couldn't ask you to do that. Practice takes, like, two hours –"

"That's fine," he said before he slowly looked back at me. "Edward still has to come back to pick us up. That gives me plenty of time to get home and come right back. If anything, we can start talking about the essay –"

"Yes!" Alice said, making me jump. "That's a _perfect_ idea!"

I glanced at Jasper, but his expression was unreadable when he looked at me. "It really isn't a problem," he said.

"But you really don't have to…" I said as he took a step towards me. He reached behind me and pulled my phone out of my back pocket, making me jump.

"But I want to," he said, flipping my phone open before he started pressing buttons. "I'm giving you my phone number. Text or call me when you wrap up. Alice, you have that essay to turn into Miss Campbell, don't you?"

She didn't look happy. "Yes."

Jasper finally smiled again, but it didn't hold any warmth. "Great," he said, accenting the singular word by snapping my phone shut. He handed it back to me. "I actually have to talk to her anyway so I'll walk with you. I'll see you after practice, Blaire."

"Um, that – that works?"

As quickly as it all began, it ended. Jasper pulled Alice in the opposite direction. He was speaking to her, his lips moving fast, but he was so quiet I couldn't even hear what he was saying. It left me behind, confused and buzzing.

I just got Jasper Hale's _phone number_.

 **V**

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Ayyy, look at are girl, Blaire! She just got a hot guy's phone number! Score! Now, I wonder how this ride home is going to work? Questions, questions...

Let me know how you liked this chapter! As always, I appreciate you guys adding this story to your favs, alerts, as well as reviewing! Thank you so much for supporting this story!


	15. RIDE

You guys are fantastic! As always, these comments make my day. Especially after the semi-frustrating day I've had today.

So as a thank you, here's a chapter a little earlier than I anticipated!

* * *

 **13\. RIDE**

Gym class passed in a blur. Jessica and Mike demanded to know how Bella was, like I had answers. I was still waiting to get them myself. I texted Bella just before class started, but when class ended and I changed for soccer, she still hadn't texted me back.

I entered practice tense and anxious. My drills were sloppier than normal and I got called out on it more than once. So I threw myself into practice plays, determined to make up for it. It was pretty easy to do since Lauren-freaking-Mallory was leading the defensive team. She was playing more aggressively today than usual, which I responded to in kind. The practice plays quickly turned into a savage one-on-one game.

"What's your deal today, _Mallory_?" I demanded when she shoulder-checked me a lot harder than necessary.

She shrugged innocently, eyes flashing when she gave me a haughty look. It came with an upturned nose and everything. "Just making sure your head's in the game, _Holcomb_ , that's all."

"Well as nice as your motives might be, they're actually coming across more asshole-ish, so do you think you could tone it down?" I asked.

" _Positions_!" Coach Davis shouted.

We jogged back to the center of the field. "I don't know," Lauren said before I reached my position. "Do you think you could tone down being such a slut?"

My eyes widened. " _What_?"

The ball dropped and I shot forward. Lauren-freaking-Mallory was on top of me in an instant. I was able to get around her, but I couldn't quite concentrate with that jarring four-letter word bouncing around my head. The ball swept out from under my feet by a defending left-fielder. I growled out a curse and wheeled around to follow them.

One of my centerfielders caught the ball and passed it back to me. I dribbled it back down the field, determined to score another goal on Lauren-freaking-Mallory. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her coming in to my side. She was going to check me again. I toed the ball under my feet and attempted to spin out of her way, which she also saw coming. So she dropped and slid for me, the spikes of her cleats _out_ and heading straight for my exposed legs.

My heart leapt up into my throat. I reacted before I said anything. I shoved the ball to the side and leapt the other way, jumping across Lauren's legs so she couldn't hit me. It was all kind of impressive, honestly, I got some serious air. When I hit the ground, I landed awkwardly and my legs crumpled underneath me. I rolled to a stop across the grass a foot or so away from Lauren.

In the background, Coach Davis blew his whistle. The noise would have normally cut through the action, but the blood roaring through my ears and electrifying my veins forced me to my feet. I made a beeline right for Lauren-insert-a- _way_ - _stronger_ - _expletive_ - _here_ - _Mallory_.

She was already on her feet, acting as if nothing even happened, about to run back to her position. I heard Coach Davis shout our names, but it was too late.

"What the fuck was _that_?" I shouted, shoving Lauren with all of my might. She stumbled forward a few steps, but she didn't fall. She whipped around and gasped at me, pale fishy eyes glinting in untapped fury.

"You almost _cleated_ me!" I continued, my heart beating so fast I was afraid it was going to explode out of my chest. "What the fuck, _Mallory_? We're on the same _team_!"

"Yeah _right_!" Lauren shouted back. She shoved me just as hard, forcing me a few feet away from her face. "Who the hell do you think you are? You think you can just show up and take over this team – this _school_ – and expect everyone to just _accept_ it? You're such a bitch!"

"What the hell? What are you even _talking_ about?" I demanded, my stomach roiling. "Nothing like that is even happening, what the hell –"

"Break it up!" Marissa Alverez shouted. The rest of the team descended upon us, grabbing our arms, hauling us backwards. I let them, too confused to even react in time.

"Holcomb! Mallory!" Coach Davis shouted. "What the hell is going on?"

Everyone on the team started talking at once, trying to regale their sides of the story. My limbs started trembling from stress and pent-up anger as I glared at Lauren-freaking-Mallory with every ounce of vitriol I could muster.

"Everyone, shut _up_!" Marissa Alverez screamed. It effectively quieted everyone into soft mumbles. She pointed at Lauren. "Mallory," she started, "what the fuck?"

"What?" Lauren asked, trying to act innocent, though she looked panicked.

"You know what. Everyone saw it," Marissa said. "When you slid in for the ball, your cleats were _out_. If Blaire hadn't jumped out of the way, you would have cleated her."

"What? I would _not_ –"

"That's enough," Coach Davis said. "I want Alverez, Holcomb, and Mallory in my office. Now. Anderson, run the team through drills until I come back."

I followed the coach back toward the locker rooms, making sure to keep Marissa Alverez between myself and Lauren Mallory. I was stricken, terrified of the girl walking on Marissa's other side, someone I sat next to at lunch. How could she do something like that? I always knew she had it out for me since my first day, but trying to _cleat_ me? And do it so obviously?

Coach Davis let us into the office. Lauren and I sat in the only two chairs in front of his desk while Marissa leaned back against the wall behind us. He took off his baseball cap and ran a hand through his thinning hair. "What's the problem?" he asked.

"Ask _her_ ," I said, jerking my head toward Lauren. "She's been after me all practice."

"I have _not_ –"

"You _have_!" I exclaimed. "Stop lying! Everyone knows it's true! If you're going to be such a bitch, at least own up to it –"

"Watch the language, Holcomb," Coach Davis warned.

"Sorry, Coach, but seriously, she needs to own up to it," I repeated. "I don't want to fight with you, Lauren, I honestly have no idea what this is about. I've proven to everyone else that I deserve a place on this team, what do I have to do to earn it with you?"

Lauren rolled her eyes, but said nothing. She focused on glaring a hole into the ground at her feet. Anger bubbled up within me.

"I don't want to be anywhere near her," I said, folding my arms across my chest. "If she's not going to try and talk to me about whatever's bothering her, I don't even want to be on the same _team_ as her. I came here to play soccer, not soap operas."

"I agree," Coach Davis said. "Holcomb, hit the showers –"

"I can still play," I said.

"It wasn't a suggestion," Coach Davis said. "You and Mallory are both suspended from practice for the week. That includes the game next Friday."

" _What_?" I demanded. "I didn't even _do_ anything!"

"You retaliated," Davis replied. "Hit the showers, Holcomb, or I'll make it two."

I shoved myself out of the chair and stormed out of his office, sending a cold glare Lauren's way before I left.

I banged into the locker room, forcefully yanking out my gym bag from my locker before turning to the showers. I showered in record time, my skin still tingling and pink from the scalding hot water. I changed into a pair of workout leggings and a soft navy crewneck that boasted Forks High across the front before toeing on my sneakers. I braided back my damp hair in the large mirror on one of the walls, frowning at the pink splotches on my pale face.

I texted Jasper shortly after that, hoping he was still able to pick me up. I really didn't want to walk home from practice on top of the disaster that was today. My phone buzzed shortly after from Jasper Hale: _Already outside. Bleachers._

I tempered down the flutter in my chest at the words and made my way out of the locker room, only to find Marissa Alverez standing in front of the doors. She frowned at me. "Are you all right?"

"Just super," I said flatly. "It's not every day you get suspended from the team because someone else was trying to pick a fight with you."

"I'm going to talk Coach out of that," Marissa said, "but you have to know where he was coming from."

"Not really," I said. "And as much as I'd love to ponder the middle-aged mind, I have a ride to catch."

"I'll walk with you, then," Marissa offered.

"What? So Mallory can make a quick getaway?" I snarked.

Marissa rolled her eyes. "Yes and no. Come on, Holcomb, quit letting the anger talk and think for a second. You should have come straight to me or Coach Davis when Mallory did that."

"Why don't you stop and think about it for a second?" I snapped. "If this whole sport was your dream, your life – not just a way to get into college – how would you feel if your own teammate tried to cleat you? In _practice_? If she hit me just right, she could have torn my Achilles. If I let her hit me, the rest of my season would've been taken away from me. I already had to move away from my club, trainers, and school – add that on top of an injury? I wouldn't stand a chance getting into the minor leagues, maybe not even a college. You know I already have scouts coming to watch me play, right?"

Marissa frowned, but nodded.

"Soccer is my _life_ ," I said. "It's all I want to do. The worst part of it all is that Lauren knew that too, but she _still_ did what she did."

I pushed out of the double-doors leading back outside, blasting us with cool air. "If you could talk to Coach Davis, that'd be great," I said, "but I won't hold my breath."

"I'll handle it, Holcomb," she said. "You'll be back for next week's practice. In the meantime, run your drills. Your rotating step-ons were horrendous."

I laughed. "All right, fine. If you can get me out of suspension, I promise they'll be flawless."

Marissa stopped talking. Instead, she looked over my shoulder. I followed her gaze and realized why.

Jasper Hale strode toward us, hands shoved in his pockets as a gust of wind buffeted his side. It whipped his blond curls all over the place. When he saw us looking at him, he offered a small wave.

" _He's_ your ride?" Marissa asked.

I shrugged. "It was supposed to be Bella Swan, but she got sick and had to go home early. Jasper overheard and offered to pick me up instead. We need to work on that history essay anyway."

"You're so lucky," she said. "I'll see you on Thursday. Try not to study _too_ hard."

She waved back at Jasper and jogged toward the field where the other members of my team continued to practice. Some were watching us, but Marissa quickly whipped them into shape when she reached them. I offered Jasper a half-hearted smile when he approached.

"Is everything all right?" He asked, noticing the team still on the field. "I thought you said practice took two hours."

"I guess I'm just special," I said as I started walking back the way he came. Jasper fell in step beside me and grabbed my gym bag before I could pull it up my shoulder. I let him take it, appreciative of the small kindness since I was sinking into a worse mood. "Or… maybe suspended. I don't really know, actually."

"What happened?" He asked as we walked toward the front of the school.

"Lauren- _freaking_ -Mallory," I replied. "She tried to cleat me during practice."

"She did _what_?" Jasper looked down at me, a muscle in his jaw jumping as he did.

I shrugged. "She's lucky I'm fast. I dodged her before anything happened, but still. It was obviously intentional. So after I got out of the way, I tried to fight her."

"Good," Jasper said. The word sounded more like a growl, which may or may not have sent a thrill through me. "Davis should kick her off the team."

"Coach Davis should do a lot of things," I said. "Like call Lauren out every time she body-checks me or tries to trip me. Or maybe he should do better in building up the team instead of letting Marissa Alverez do all the work, or – Wait, whose car is this?"

Jasper arched a brow at me as the lights flickered on a red Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. It was lifted at least six inches and then lifted even more with massive mud tires. A light bar stretched across the top of it. I watched in slight amazement as Jasper opened the back door and set my gym bag inside before holding his hand out again: a silent direction. I quickly slung my backpack off my shoulders and handed it to him so he could put it in the back as well.

"My brother's," Jasper answered.

"Edward drives a Volvo," I said dumbly while Jasper shut the door and walked over to the passenger's side. He opened its front door and looked at me. Another silent direction. I clambered into the front seat. Jasper smirked at me before he shut the door.

"Edward isn't my only brother," he replied before walking to the other side of the car and stepping into the driver's side. "We usually don't drive his car to school because of the gas mileage and, like Emmett, is monstrous. We usually take it camping since it can handle off-road trails. We're actually going out this weekend, so I thought I'd fill up the tank on my way to pick you up. Do you mind if we drive with the windows down?"

"Uh, no," I said, barely registering the question. "This car is badass. Emmett has great taste."

Jasper chuckled. "Don't let Rosalie hear you say that. She hates this thing."

He started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. The Jeep rolled similarly to its owner – very tank-like – as it accelerated away from the school. Cold wind whipped through the open windows of the car, pulling some of the strands of my hair out of its braid. I barely noticed, too entranced by the way the wet Pacific air felt as it brushed across my face. I watched the trees turn into a blur as the engine underneath us growled. For the first time since I came to Forks, I could finally recall the nostalgia I always felt when I visited. It made me light. Content.

"So… Do all of your siblings have cars?" I asked, sticking my hand out of the car. I let the air push it upwards and carry it. "Or is it just Edward and Emmett?"

"We all do – Well, I don't," Jasper said, then corrected himself. "I have a motorcycle. But it makes sense for all of us to carpool, you know, because of the world's finite resources and all that."

I turned around to look at him, dropping my hand on the side of the car. "Wait, back up, did you just say you have a _motorcycle_?"

He smirked at me. He didn't even have to say anything else. Good Lord. Could he _be_ any more attractive? Seriously, it was bordering on ridiculous.

"That's… kind of awesome," I said. "I can't believe your parents let you drive a motorcycle. You should bring it to school sometime so I can see it."

"I promise it's not that thrilling," Jasper assured me.

"It is to me," I said. "You should bring it tomorrow!"

"I'll see what I can do," he said with a smile worming its way across his face. I decided I liked that smile the most. It looked indulging and humorous, better than the cold, calculating expressions. Like the one he sported earlier in between fifth and sixth period.

"Is everything okay?" I suddenly asked. "With Alice, I mean. She seemed kind of… panicked earlier."

"She's all right," he said. "You'll have to forgive her, she… she didn't have the best upbringing. Sometimes she can be… triggered for no reason at all."

"That's horrible," I said. "I couldn't imagine dealing with something like that from day to day. I've seen it happen to my uncle. He went through some things in Afghanistan that still affect him. I know not to ask. I just… I was worried, that's all. She looked like she saw a ghost or something."

Jasper grimaced. "It's all right," he said. " _She's_ all right. I walked her to Campbell's class to make sure."

My heart warmed at his thoughtfulness, but also broke a little because I remembered what Lauren-freaking-Mallory said about them on my first day at Forks High. "Are you guys close?"

"Closer than I am with my other siblings," he said. "It's always been like that, though. We just… clicked the moment we saw each other."

I really didn't know how to take that. My mind whirred with possibilities. Did that mean Lauren was right? Were they actually _dating_? I didn't want to ask, but that didn't stop the unease from constricting my heart. Of course I would crush on a guy who was already taken. Of _course_.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Jasper was looking at me. His eyes flickered from me to the road, then back to me again. Like he was waiting for something. "What?" I asked.

"You _really_ don't pry, do you?" He asked.

"Um… no?" I said, too taken aback to come up with a better response. "Is that a problem?"

"I'm not sure."

I frowned at him. "Well when you find out, I guess you can let me know."

The Jeep rolled up on my uncle's driveway. The decrepit hatchback in dire need of a new transmission was the only other car in the driveway. Jasper shifted his car into park and turned it off.

"Thank you for the ride," I said. "Walking home probably would have sucked."

"Of course," he said. Even though his tone was light, everything else about him wasn't. Jasper's hands tightened on the steering wheel. The cold look was on his face and his eyes glinted as they swept across my uncle's house. "Let me walk you to the door," he said.

I almost told him there wasn't a need, but something in his face told me not to argue with him. "Okay," I said quietly.

I slipped out of my side of the car and walked across the front to meet Jasper. He already had my backpack and sports bag in his hands, passing them to me. I was surprised he didn't try to carry both up to the house for me. I walked up to the front door, as always, incredibly aware of Jasper right behind me.

While I unlocked my door, Jasper stood back. He leaned against the porch railing, surveying the rest of the neighborhood with casual interest. When I finally opened the door, I threw my stuff inside. "Oh, uh…" I said. "We… We didn't talk about the essay."

Jasper's gaze slid back to me, rooting me to my spot just in front of my open door. To be caught under such a stare was intense and maddening. It made my heart race and my skin warm. It reminded me of how I felt just before he walked away from the locker room this morning – had it really only been this morning? It seemed like a lifetime ago.

I couldn't be the only one who felt this way. Jasper Hale couldn't be oblivious to the sparks that seemed to fly between us in moments just like this. It was so confusing, so consuming, so engrossing, I'd never felt so solely _aware_ of another person in my entire _life_ –

Jasper sighed, releasing a low gravelly noise that sounded close to a damn-near _growl_. But that couldn't have been the noise he made, right? Whatever it was, it made my muscles tighten again in anticipation. I watched his body stiffen as well, even though he still leaned against the porch, bearing the weight of himself on one hand. It was that one hand that flexed against the wood railing, forcing me to notice his long fingers. My throat suddenly felt too dry.

"We… You could… Come in," I was barely able to get the words out. I'd never done anything like this before. I didn't think I could. He could be dating Alice Cullen, for crying out loud! I wasn't this kind of person! But when I thought about Jasper turning around and walking away… I didn't think I'd be able to take it. "If you –"

Something _snapped!_ far off in the forest behind the house. The sound made both of us jump.

I frowned. "What was that?"

"A deer, probably," Jasper said. He looked distant again. Frustrated. "I should get back."

Go? Oh God. I wanted to slam my head into the nearest wall. "Um, right, okay. God, I'm so sorry. Are you –?"

I wrung my hands together as the stress threatened to eat me alive. Didn't I just say I wasn't a person who pried into other people's business? Ugh! But I had to know. I _had_ to.

"Are you in a relationship?" I demanded, the words coming out in a rush.

Jasper blinked. My heart dropped into my stomach. Then he smiled. I wanted to die.

"No," he said, looking almost _too_ triumphant for his own good. "I'm not."

"Oh," I said. "Oh, okay."

I wanted to say that was great – I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. But I did none of those things. Instead I watched Jasper step backwards off of my front porch, his eyes never straying from mine. "I'll see you at school tomorrow, Blaire," he said.

"Bye, Jasper," I said.

He pulled out of my driveway and didn't look back. As always, he broke the spell first, leaving me muddled and confused and wondering _why the hell he didn't want to come in_?

This was the worst, most humiliating day ever.

 **V**

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Poor Blaire. Jasper has got her all over the place. I wonder how this will make things turn out. Are you curious?

Let me know what you think!


	16. FAMILY DINNER

Merp. Sorry for the delay, guys. Between this beast and my original works, I needed a little break.

FYI, this chapter is a little filler-y, but I felt like it was necessary to write for Blaire's character, the characters around her, and the building of her world. And since this is a fanfiction, I don't give a fuck about the pacing of this plot lmao. I'll get to everything in good time. I hope you guys don't mind.

Enjoy!

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 **14\. FAMILY DINNER**

I woke up in a terrible mood.

Luckily, no one in my family noticed.

My mom was frenetic mess of motion while remaining seated at the kitchen table. Her computer sat in front of her and documents were spread out everywhere else. Waylon was already gone, which put me in a worse mood. Since my mom and I moved in, I saw him less and less.

"Is Uncle Waylon okay?" I asked as I walked past my mom.

"What?" My mom asked, jerking her head up from her computer screen. Her hair was falling out of its haphazard bun and her glasses were about to slip off her nose. "Oh, of course, honey. He's just got a lot going on at the station right now."

I _hummed_ because I didn't exactly buy it. Even when Uncle Waylon had long days at the station, he always came home with a smile on his face. I remembered that from my childhood. When he came home now, he looked strung out, like an elastic band stretched too far. It was like he was going to snap at any second. When he came home from work, he would eat dinner with us and hardly say a word. After dinner, he would help clean everything up and go straight to his room, where he'd stay all night with the light on. I'd hoped that we would spend some time together before my mom made us move back to Seattle, but those hopes were being dashed with every passing day.

"There are waffles in the toaster for you," my mom said. "I also bought some of that granola you like on my way home yesterday."

"Thanks," I said, even though I wasn't that hungry. I made my way into the kitchen just as the waffles popped out of the toaster.

"Are you okay, Bee?" My mom asked.

So much for getting away with my current mood.

I looked up from drenching my waffles in syrup. "I'm fine," I said.

I was halfway through my breakfast when my mom spoke again. "Do you want to help me with dinner tonight? I'm thinking about grilling. It's not supposed to rain today so it's the right time."

"Yeah, okay," I said. "That sounds fun."

"Why don't you invite Bella and Charlie too?" She asked. "It'll be just like old times. I think we could all do with a little reconnecting."

Bella _and_ Charlie? Yeah, because that worked out so well the last time we had dinner at Waylon's house. I was relieved when my phone buzzed with a text from Bella letting me know she was on my uncle's driveway, ready to pick me up.

"I'll ask," I said as I put my empty plate in the sink. "I'll come home right after school to help."

"All right, sweetheart," my mom said. I grabbed my backpack and walked out the door. "Have a good day!"

"You too!" I called back. "Love you!"

I closed the front door just as my mom repeated the sentiment and jogged toward Bella's truck. "Hey, girl!" I said as I jumped in the passenger seat and shut the door behind me. "Do you need me to drive? I really don't want you passing out at the wheel –"

"Ha _ha_ ," Bella said as she put the car in reverse. "You're hilarious."

"I can't believe you passed out over a drop of _blood_ ," I went on as she drove. "And that _Edward_ had to take you home! You know, there are easier ways to get a guy's attention –"

"That's not what was happening and you know it," Bella snapped. "Oh crap, Blaire! I'm sorry I didn't pick you up from practice, I didn't have my car –"

"Oh my gosh, relax, Bells," I said. "Obviously I'm fine and obviously you're fine. But what kind of best friend would I be if I didn't give you a hard time about _literally_ everything going on in your life?"

"Well then, two can play at that game," Bella said. "How was your ride home with _Jasper Hale_?"

"No, no, Swan, you can't just change the subject like that," I said, partially trying to protect myself. I didn't think I would ever be in the mood to talk about _that_. "We didn't even talk about your time with Edward! Is he less of a douche yet?"

"He's not a douche," she mumbled. "And it was fine. He was… nice?"

"Nice?" I laughed. "You say that like you're not even sure!"

"I'm not!" She exclaimed. "He just keeps… flip-flopping! All over the place! I have no idea what he means when he says some things. I don't know how to read him."

Well, that certainly sounded familiar. I pursed my lips. "Maybe you should just ask him out on a date and get it over with. If he says no, at least you'll know where you stand."

Bella looked at me as if I was insane, then she focused back on the road, her face turning bright red. "Yeah, right. Is that what you're going to do with Jasper?"

I scoffed. "No. Unlike you, I know exactly where I stand."

"What's with the tone?" She asked. "You seem… down. I thought things were going well?"

Great, that was the second person to notice.

"I… don't think he's interested," I said. "Which is fine. I've got too much going on as it is. Boys only complicate things."

"Blaire…" Bella started out.

"Don't," I waved her off as she pulled into a parking spot at school. I pushed out of the car as soon as she turned it off. "It's fine, really."

"But I think you're wrong," she said. We met behind her truck and started walking toward the school.

"Uh, trust me, I'm pretty sure I'm right," I said. "Can we stop talking about this, please? It's kind of embarrassing enough –"

" _Blaire_!" My back went ramrod straight at the sound of my name being shouted from across the parking lot.

I turned toward the person who said my name, surprised to see Alice Cullen and Rosalie Hale standing behind their Volvo. Rosalie glared at me, a vicious sight that made me shake in my Converse. Alice was the one who shouted my name. She was waving excitedly. I awkwardly started lifting my hand to wave back, but paused, when I realized she wasn't actually waving at all. Instead, she was flapping her hand toward the front of the school. I frowned.

Then the throaty growl of an engine echoed through the parking lot.

The noise cracked like thunder and made some of the other students stop in their tracks right along with me. They also wanted to see what monster was threatening to tear the school apart.

A silver motorcycle swept into the parking lot. It was massive and sleek, the perfect tool for speed and agility. The rider was clad in jeans, boots, a black leather jacket, and a backpack. A black helmet obscured his face (because whoever the rider was, he was most definitely male) –

Oh my God, wait. Was that –?

The bike swung into its own parking spot a few spaces away from the Volvo. When the rider turned the engine off, the entire school seemed way too quiet. Or maybe I was just imagining things. When the rider dismounted the bike effortlessly and removed his helmet, he exposed waves of honey-blond hair that turned gold in the overcast light.

Oh _crap_.

Of course I had to be right. Of _course_.

Jasper Hale walked away from his motorcycle, sparing it one appreciative look before turning toward the school. That was when I became fully aware of the rest of the student body of Forks High. They were all most definitely staring. Most of them had mixed expressions: amazement, envy, _lust_ (my mood blackened at those looks), but when I looked back at Jasper, he was only looking at me.

Cue the rest of the world not existing again.

He walked past Rosalie and Alice and threw his helmet at them without a glance. Rosalie caught it. It slammed into her hands with a loud _slap_!

I was absolutely rooted to my spot as he approached. I didn't think I would be able to walk away if I wanted to. When he stood in front of me, _towered_ over me, I was powerless. He smiled like he knew it too. "Good morning, Blaire."

I was dangerously close to becoming a pile of mush. I had so many questions. Why didn't he bring his motorcycle to school more often? Where did he get that jacket? Why didn't he wear _that_ more often? Had he always worn V-neck T-shirts? Why didn't I notice _that_ sooner?

"You brought it to school," I said, focusing on the motorcycle. Wait, did I even say good morning?

"Of course," he said, bemused. "I told you I would."

But _why_? He wasn't even interested.

My fingers tightened around the straps of my backpack as my frustration started building. I was a straightforward person. I thought Jasper was too. If he liked me or didn't like me... Well, he had a funny way of showing it. "It's… nice," I said. "The bike, I mean. It looks really nice."

"I'm glad you like it," he said. He sounded sincere, maybe relieved. Why should he be relieved? Why did he even care if _I_ liked it or not?

It didn't make sense. I didn't know why he made the effort of bringing the motorcycle to school if it wasn't for me. Maybe it was just a coincidence that he brought it the day after I asked him to. He did say he would. With a bike like that, of course he'd take it out on the one day it wasn't raining this week. It was just a coincidence. It had to be.

During my first couple of weeks at Forks High, I let everyone convince a _tiny_ part of me that Jasper Hale was actually _into_ me. For a second, I actually believed them. But then yesterday happened. He had every opportunity – _We_ had every opportunity – and he just _left_. Maybe it was for the best. I didn't know what I would have done if he accepted the invitation to come into my house, to stay over for a while, but I definitely wouldn't have wanted to talk about history essays. Maybe he picked up on that, so he proved he didn't feel the same way. But why did it seem like he was still trying? Was it because he felt bad for me?

Oh no. I didn't _do_ sympathy.

I frowned at him. The light, somewhat confused look on his face quickly melted away into concern. "Are you –?"

Not another one!

"I have to go," I said, reaching back for Bella. I grabbed her arm in a vice-like grip. "Bella and I need to, um, work on our essays for Mister Mason's class. I'll see you in history."

"Don't you want to go over Spanish again at lunch?"

Yeah right. "Oh no, it's okay. Really," I said as I shoved Bella onward, despite her muttered protests. "Don't worry, I pick up things pretty fast."

Now he looked bewildered. "What?"

"Bye!" I said, finally pushing Bella to set a swift pace for the school.

 **V**

If I thought yesterday was bad, today was probably the worst.

A good portion of Forks High learned about the cleating incident during practice yesterday, so I had to dodge the near-constant torrent of questions from certain students trying to get both sides of the story, including Jessica Stanley. She was relentless in Spanish.

At lunch, I made a point _not_ to look at the Cullen's lunch table, but that didn't stop everyone from telling me they kept catching Jasper Hale glancing over every so often. Lauren Mallory didn't sit with us, which only sparked more rumors. Things escalated from there when she apparently ducked out of the Forks High beach trip. Phase two of my elaborate plan to get on Lauren Mallory's nerves didn't feel so satisfying anymore – especially when she thought the best way to retaliate was by ruining my soccer career.

In history, Mister Apell divvied out essay topics, which only brought me to the unfortunate realization that I wouldn't be free of Jasper Hale any time soon. I honestly wanted to stop talking to him altogether so I could wean myself off of the little crush I'd developed for him. Was that too much to ask? I debated on whether or not towrite the essay myself just to achieve that goal.

When the bell finally rang, I practically sprinted out of the room.

Gym couldn't end fast enough. When the final bell rang, it was me forcing Bella to make a rush for her car.

"What is your _deal_?" Bella demanded after I practically threw myself into the cab of her truck. I glared at my backpack resting heavily in my lap and tried to avoid eye contact with the entirety of Forks High.

"Do you have any plans tonight?" I asked. "My mom's going to grill tonight and she was wondering if you and Charlie wanted to come over."

Bella backed out of the parking space. "If I say yes," she said as she pulled away from the school, "will you tell me what's going on?"

"Maybe," I said. "Why don't you just come over? We still have to get the groceries for dinner tonight and prep, and I know those are your two favorite hobbies so –"

"Are you always this prickly when you talk about boys?" Bella asked. "Because I think it's going to make college difficult."

"Only if you got to Stanford," I said. I texted my mom to let her know Bella was coming over.

"Yeah…"

My head shot up. "Wait, what?" Bella glanced at me with a small smile playing at the corner of her mouth. I grinned. " _Yeah_? Yeah as in you're going to Stanford with me?"

"You say it like we've already been accepted," Bella said. "But I'm getting used to the idea. Now, are you going to tell me what's going on with you and Jasper?"

I groaned. "God, you're persistent."

"I try," she said smugly.

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. "Fine, fine. But this doesn't leave the truck. Got it?"

Bella nodded.

"So, yesterday, when Jasper took me home, we… had a… a moment," I said, physically _cringing_ at my words. A _moment_? Seriously?

"A moment." Bella echoed. Her tone made it obvious she wasn't impressed with my word choice, either.

"I mean… yeah?" I groaned again. "Look, I know it sounds stupid. I just… _He's_ just… It's just…"

"Overwhelming?"

" _Yes_ ," I said. Was she dealing with the same things with Edward? "That. So I just… I may have… offered to invite him in to talk about our history essay?"

"Your history essay," Bella deadpanned again.

"I know, I know. Just hold on –"

"I don't really see what the problem is," she said.

" _What_?" My voice was coming out strangled and pitchy. "Bella! The boy took me home? To an empty house that would _stay_ empty for _hours_?"

"Oh," Bella said.

"Yeah, _oh_ ," I said. "I mean – the opportunity was _there_! Didn't you think about doing that to Edward? Anyway, nothing happened. At all. After I asked, he just _left_. Then he comes to school today in his motorcycle, after he said he would bring it to school sometime since I asked him yesterday – Just – What does that _mean_?"

"I don't think he's not interested. Maybe he's just trying to be a gentleman?" Bella suggested. "I mean, maybe their adopted parents are a little old-fashioned so they raised them that way?"

I sent her a look. "Yeah… right. Bella, do you actually _know_ what happens in high school? Because it's not the hot guys who run the abstinence club."

"Were you going to have sex with him?" She asked, horrorstruck.

"No, of course not!" I said. "But would I have said no to making out? Um… no. No, I would not."

"You're so brave," she said. "I wouldn't have been able to do that."

"What? Invite a guy in for a make out session? Why, it's just kissing."

Bella's face was scarlet. "I've never even had my first kiss," she mumbled.

My eyes widened. " _What_?"

"Oh look, we're here, so we need to end this conversation," Bella said quickly as she practically whipped the truck into Waylon's driveway.

The rest of the day passed sluggishly. Bella and I helped my mom shop for steaks and ingredients for salad and macaroni and cheese. We helped her prep the meal, blasting Top Forty music and singing at the tops of our lungs.

When we had to start grilling, we moved our party to the backyard. Bella helped me run soccer drills while my mom handled the grill. Charlie and Waylon arrived at the house shortly after and joined us outside. The weird tension between my mom and Charlie when we first moved to Forks seemed to have disappeared, but it was replaced with something worse. Banter. _Playful_ banter.

Bella and I thought it was _nauseating_.

At least Waylon did too, so he made fun of them relentlessly. "Seriously," he said as he sipped his beer. "Should Annie start looking for houses in Forks instead of apartments in Seattle?"

"I'd be cool with that," I said.

"Lay off, Waylon," Charlie said.

Waylon shrugged. "Just calling 'em like I see 'em."

"Well then we need to get your eyes checked," Charlie replied. "It seems like you're reading into things that aren't even there."

" _Yet_ ," Waylon corrected. "Things that aren't even there _yet_."

"Like what?" I asked.

Charlie _harrumphed_. "Your uncle's got it in his head that it _wasn't_ a mountain lion that killed the security guard."

"Oh?" I asked. "Then what would it be? A bear?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Charlie replied, giving Waylon a sideways look. "But he's playing his cards close to the chest on this one."

"That's not like you, Way," my mom said. "You're all about your conspiracy theories."

Waylon shrugged again. "This one's different, that's all. I don't have all the details myself."

"Well I'm game for a good conspiracy," I said as I juggled the soccer ball between my feet. "You should take me back to work with you. I promise I'll make a badass sidekick."

My mom waved her tongs at me. "Don't you start, Blaire Charmine," she said. I rolled my eyes.

"Aw, let the kid cuss, Anne," Waylon said. "She's almost eighteen anyway. When we were her age, we did a lot worse than rattle off a couple of bad words –"

"She doesn't need to know that!"

"Yes she does!" I said.

Waylon rolled his eyes and took another swig of his beer. My mom sighed in exasperation. "You're a terrible influence," she said.

"Annie, you wound me," Waylon accused. "And here I was planning a lake day."

I perked up. "A lake day?"

My uncle smiled and nodded at me. "Just like old times. I thought it'd be nice, since the weather's finally warming up and all. Why don't we go next Saturday?"

I grinned. "That sounds great –"

"It really would," my mom said, "but we have an appointment in Seattle."

"What appointment?" I asked.

"I found a place," my mom said. "It's a townhouse near the Sound. I've already looked at it and I think it's the one, but I wanted you to look as well."

My heart dropped. "Really?" I asked.

The silence stretching throughout the backyard was awkward. My mom scrapped the tongs across the grates of the grill in order to flip the steaks. "We can talk about it later, Bee," she said.

I didn't _want_ to talk about it, but I decided when we would, I would try to convince her that Forks was the right place for me to stay until I was done with school.

Dinner was quiet but pleasant. It reminded me of the dinners we would have as a group during the summers. Classic rock played quietly through the house as my uncle broke out a deck of cards for a game of poker. I invited Bella to spend the night when we both noticed Charlie's cheeks growing rosier with every beer he drank. It was one of the best evenings I'd ever had.

"Hey, I forgot to ask," Bella said conversationally as my mom shuffled the cards to start a game of black jack. "Do you guys know of place called Goat Rocks or something like that? I think it's south of Mount Rainier."

"Oh yeah," Waylon said. "That's a real hot spot during bear season. I'm trying to convince Blaire to go hunting with me – that could be our first trip!"

I groaned loudly. "For the last time, I'm _not_ killing any defenseless animals!"

"Oh," Bella said, frowning. "Do – Do people go camping there?"

"It's not a very good spot for it," Charlie said. "Why?"

Everyone was looking at the brunette girl now, whose face was turning red under our gazes. She squirmed in her seat. "I don't know," she said. "Some kids were talking about camping there, or something. Maybe I got the name wrong."

"Let's hope so," Charlie said. "I'd rather not tell some kid's parents they died from a bear attack."

"How morbid," my mom said as she started dealing cards.

"Which kids?" Waylon asked.

"Um," Bella hesitated. "The Cullens. Honestly, though, I probably misheard them."

"Does it matter, Uncle Way?" I asked as I piled my cards together.

My uncle shrugged and pulled his cards close to him. "Only if I see one of their cars near there. Charlie's got a point. We wouldn't want anyone to get hurt. If they were planning on going there during this time, it'd be dangerous. Those bears can be cranky after waking up from hibernation."

I frowned at him but didn't comment on it, too focused on doing the math in my head for the hand of cards my mom dealt out. I was about to bust.

 **V**

* * *

So, I feel like we haven't really had a lot of time with Waylon and Blaire's mom since the beginning of this story, which is kind of sad because Blaire is a family-oriented kind of girl. I thought we could use a nice little filler that still lets ya'll know Blaire's mom does love her and Waylon's still around. Plus, fleshing out Bella's character is one of my many writing-centric hobbies.

Let me know what you guys think! Thank you so much for reading, favoriting, and commenting! Your reviews are a major driving force for my updates!


	17. GOOD DAYS

Guess who's back, back again!

Twitch is back, tell a friend!

* * *

 **15\. GOOD DAYS**

 _Click._

I opened my eyes, surprised that one small noise could wake me so easily. It was still dark outside so I could barely see my own room. I rolled over on my side and looked at my alarm clock. In obnoxiously bright LED numbers, it read 3:15AM.

 _Whoosh._

A freezing cold breeze brushed past my face. I shot up and searched my room as my eyes adjusted to the darkness. Across from my bed, I watched my curtains sway. The movements were a little more chaotic than the usual fluttered from the air vent. Or were they? Maybe it was just my imagination?

A soft mumble from beside me pulled my focus. Bella was fast asleep next to me. Obviously she wasn't what made the noises. Or maybe there hadn't been any noises to begin with –

Then my door _creaked_.

I looked to my right at the door I knew for a _fact_ I closed, slowly swinging open.

I was frozen. My eyes were glued to the open door and the slivered view it offered me of the rest of the second floor.

Then I heard footsteps.

I shot out of bed, making sure my own steps were silent as my bare feet padded along the cold wooden floors. I slipped out of my room and startled when a light flipped on. I stopped at the top of the stairs, squinting at the sudden brightness.

My uncle had taken one step out of his room. He had one hand on the hallway's light switch and the other gripping his gun. Our eyes met.

" _Was that you?_ " He mouthed.

I shook my head hard and fast.

Waylon frowned. For a second, the only noise in the house was Charlie's soft snores from the couch in the living room.

 _SWAP!_

That was the screen door.

We both jumped. My breathing started coming out hard and fast. I looked down at Waylon pleadingly. He held his hand out, signaling for me to stay where I was and wait. I glared at him. Was he serious? Waylon gave me the same signal, his own face hard. " _Wait_ ," he mouthed.

Then he walked into the dining room and disappeared around the corner.

A few long seconds passed with me sitting at the top of the stairs and my uncle out of sight. My heart threatened to beat out of my chest with how furiously it pounded. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I crept down the rest of the stairs –

 _BANG!_

I sprinted, almost tripping down the last three steps. Pure terror licked through my veins as the jarring sound of the gunshot busted a massive hole through the silence of the night. I stumbled through the kitchen just as my mom screamed, "What's going _on_?!" at the top of the stairs.

" _Charlie!_ " I shouted as I ran to the back door.

I stopped short at the doorway, watching my uncle stand in the darkness with his gun cocked and pointed toward the forest ahead.

"What was it?" I demanded breathlessly.

Inside the house, chaos reigned as Charlie cursed and ran out to meet us and my mom kept shouting questions.

Waylon didn't answer me. He didn't even move.

" _Waylon_ ," I begged.

My mom's hands dropped on my shoulders and hauled me inside the house, spinning me around in the dining room to face a startled, half-awake Bella. "What's happening?" She asked, her eyes slowly growing brighter with consciousness.

I shook my head and turned, watching Charlie gently push past my mom to walk outside. I followed him, but got stopped short with my mom wrapping her arms around me, constricting me, holding me back. "What the hell is going on?" My mom demanded.

My uncle turned away from the woods and marched back into the house with Charlie on his heels. He shut the screen door and latched it shut, then he shut the main door a little necessary and locked it. "Must've been an animal," he said gruffly. "I didn't get it. I'll let the neighbors know to keep an eye out tomorrow… or later on today. Sorry to worry you all, I think I scared it off. Let's go back to bed."

"What kind of animal?" I asked.

Waylon shook his head. "I didn't get a good look," he said. "Might've been a bear."

My mother let out a loud sigh of relief before ushering me toward Bella. I shook off her arms and broke free of her hold. I frowned at the sight of Bella's paled face.

"It's all right," Waylon promised. "Sometimes they get a little close. Let's go to bed."

I nodded and walked to the stairs with Bella at my side. As I passed Waylon's room, I looked through his open door and frowned when I saw a marked up map taped to his wall, along with weird pictures I couldn't quite make out –

Waylon reached out to pull the door closed enough that I couldn't see anymore. I frowned at him.

"Let's go to bed, girls," my mom said as she herded us back up the stairs.

Walking back in my room felt eerie. I glanced around the space as Bella settled back into my bed. "You okay, Blaire?" She asked.

What was in my uncle's room?

"Bee?"

I tried to shake it off and climbed in next to her. "I'm fine," I said.

It was a lie.

"Do you think it was a bear outside?" Bella asked.

I sighed and rested my head against my pillow. "I don't know what else it could be," I admitted.

I slept fitfully after that.

 **V**

I woke up the next morning to bright light.

I groaned and opened my eyes, glaring daggers at Bella Swan as she stared out of my open window and all the sunlight streaming through it. A strange sense of anxiety prickled at the back of my neck as she stood there. The events of last night were still fresh.

"What the hell are you doing?" I groaned, pulling the covers of my blanket over my head. It was too late, though. I was already awake.

"It's sunny out!" Bella said. I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, Bella, it's the sun. I'm sure you've seen it before in Phoenix," I replied, kicking the covers off of me.

"But it's _never_ sunny here," she countered, her eyes never once turning away from the window.

"Yes it is," I said as I stood up and stretched. "I think you're just too caught up in thinking the worst about this place to even notice."

"I am not," she grumbled while I started opening my drawers. "What are you going to wear today?"

"I don't know," I said. "It's going to be cold by the water so something warm. Do you want to shower here and borrow a change of clothes? That way we don't have to stop by your house on the way to Newtons'."

"Would you mind?" Bella asked.

"Not at all," I said as I pulled out a change of fresh clothes. I then turned to my closet and pulled out a hunter green pullover. "What do you want to wear?"

"Um… what should I wear?" She asked.

"Like I said before, it's going to be cold by the water," I said as I threw my clothes on my unmade bed before turning back to my drawers. "So maybe some leggings? And a long-sleeved shirt with a vest!"

I pulled all of the clothes out from my drawers and my closet and held them out to Bella with a smile, but she looked concerned. She took the clothes with a frown and picked at the black leggings laying over the top. "Would these even fit me?" She asked skeptically.

"Yeah, they're stretchy!" I said. "Trust me, they'll fit and you'll look amazing too. The boys aren't gonna know what hit them!"

"I don't know," Bella said. "You're all toned and everything. I don't think I can pull these off –"

"Bella, seriously? _Anyone_ can pull off leggings if they want to wear them," I said. "More specifically, you'd look amazing in these. You've got the legs for it and you don't even have to try."

Before she could say anything, I shoved the rest of the clothes in her hands. Then I turned back to my closet. "Just trust me," I said. "Wear those and you'll knock Mike Newton on his ass. Maybe we'll take a couple of pictures and see if we can do the same thing to Edward. Maybe I can convince you to put on some mascara or something."

Bella sputtered, but I started pushing her out of the room before she could come up with a snappier comeback. "Now hurry up and go shower. You better not waste all the hot water!"

She laughed as she stumbled out of the room, rolling her eyes at me. "Thanks, Bee," she said. I grinned back.

"I'll make us breakfast," I said as I passed her. I hopped down the stairs, surprised when I saw my uncle's door open to his bedroom. He shuffled out, surprisingly in a pair of ripped jeans and an old faded flannel shirt. "What? No police uniform, Uncle Way?" I asked.

He quickly reached back and shut his bedroom door behind him when I bounded down the last stairs, which made me narrow my eyes in suspicion. What _was_ he hiding?

"What are you up to?" I asked. "I thought you lived at the police station."

He smirked at me, reaching out to ruffle my hair and gently steer me toward the kitchen. "I told you I was going to fix up the boat," he said as he followed me. "Make sure she's able to hold up for that lake day. Does Bella drink coffee?"

"I think so," I said as I watched him rove the kitchen and turn on the coffee maker. "I'm excited about the lake day. Do you need any help with the boat?"

He gave me a blank look. "Do you even know anything about boats?"

I shrugged. "I mean, no, but I can learn?"

"Nah," he waved me off. "You're good. Besides, don't you have that thing with your friends today? You're going to La Push, right?"

"Yeah," I said, "but there will be plenty of other days to do that."

"I'll be fine," he said, smiling. "You should go out with your friends, _plenty of other days_ will run out faster than you think."

"I guess," I said, "but I really don't mind."

"You're a good kid," he said. "Go out with your friends. I'll sequester you for another weekend."

I smiled back at him while he filled the coffee machine and started it. In moments, the rich earthy smell of coffee filled the house. I pulled out two bowls on the table and filled them with cereal. I waited to fill Bella's with milk, but I went ahead and filled mine. The only sound in the kitchen was the coffee machine percolating and me munching on granola.

 **V**

Almost an hour later, Bella pulled to a stop next to the other cars parked in Newton's Olympic Outfitters. We recognized Tyler's new Nissan Sentra and Mike's classic Suburban (his words, no one else's) and saw a group already standing around them. It was Eric and two other boys I didn't really recognize, Tyler, Jessica, Angela, Mike, and one girl from our gym class who gave Bella a dirty look as we hopped out of the truck.

"Bee-Squared!" Mike greeted us.

"Sorry," Bella said as we approached. "Are we late?"

"No way," he said. "We're still waiting on Lee and Samantha, so you guys are on time."

I waved at Angela and Jessica from where we stood. "It's a party today, huh?" I asked.

"Yup!" Mike said. "It's going to be a blast. Hey, do you guys want to ride with me? It's either that or Lee's mom's minivan."

"Sure," Bella said while I shrugged.

Mike gave us a bright smile, one that really lit up his entire face. Looking at that expression, he was actually a pretty good-looking guy. I'd probably push Bella to date him if Edward wasn't a thing.

When Lee and Samantha showed up, they brought along two more people, making space between the minivan and Suburban… cramped.

As in, I didn't have a seat.

"Girl," Tyler called from the backseat of the Suburban when we all realized the dilemma. "Why don't you come sit on my lap?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "What an offer."

"Hey, I'm just saying," he said. "Gotta get those brownie points if you want to be prom royalty."

"And then it just got more horrific," I said. "Congratulations, Tyler, I didn't even think that would be possible. Bella, we're about to get really close."

I shoved myself into the front seat of Mike's car, much to Mike and Tyler's delight. They hooted and whistled when I sat on Bella's lap, who squawked in surprise and busted out laughing. It forced Jessica closer to Mike, which made her happy.

It was only a twenty-minute drive to La Push. We drove with the windows down, which was perfect because it helped fresh air circulate through the car. It seemed to put us closer to the lush forests framing either sides of the road. The world suddenly felt vast and new, big enough for a bunch of teenagers on a perfect day.

The sight of the beach filled me with childhood nostalgia. It was gray and pebbly with driftwood littering the shore. The water beyond it was dark gray with white-capped waves that crested to meet the shore. The air smelled fresh but felt humid against my skin as it brushed through the open windows of the car.

As soon as Mike put the Suburban in park, everyone piled out. Bella and I made our way down to the beach as Mike led the way to a fire-pit in the middle of the beach. Eric and some other boy were already piling logs in the pit.

"Have you ever seen a driftwood fire?" Mike asked Bella as he kneeled next to the logs, lighting a pale stick with a cigarette lighter.

"Of course she has, Mike," I said dryly. "We only did La Push bonfires, like, every summer."

"No we didn't," Bella said, frowning.

I looked at her. "How do you forget that?" I asked. "The fire turns blue?"

"Way to ruin the surprise, Blaire," Mike said sarcastically as the fire began to burn brighter with the unusual color. "It's because of the salt."

We stayed on the beach to talk and hang out. Some of the boys talked about hiking to some tidal pools nearby.

"That sounds like fun," Jessica said eagerly as soon as Mike agreed to go. Angela quietly agreed it would be as well.

Bella looked like she was at war with herself over such a simple question. I frowned at her. "I'll go if you do," I said.

"All right," Bella said.

 **V**

The tidal pools were a spellbinding experience for everyone in the group except me. I didn't know how anyone in our group besides Bella enjoyed them, since the lessons about their mini-ecosystems had been shoved down our throats since the first grade. But it was nice to be up and moving instead of just sitting on the beach.

On our way back, Bella fell three or four times and ended up with some skinned palms and new grass stains on her jeans. That was actually not bad for her, considering the few disastrous hikes I'd been on with her when we were younger.

When we finally got back to the beach, the group we left behind grew by a few more people. They had long black hair and copper skin. "I think they're from the Reservation," Bella said.

Food had already been passed out and I claimed two sandwiches and sodas for Bella and I, meeting eyes with one of the newcomers. I smiled politely at him before sitting next to Bella and Angela. While they seemed to enjoy the silence, I talked to everyone else about tests in certain classes and how the soccer season was going and what colleges people were interested in attending. It turned out Jessica wanted to go to Stanford too.

"You're Isabella Swan, aren't you?"

I craned my neck around at the new voice, watching the boy I saw earlier talking to Bella, who looked unhappy.

"Bella," she corrected.

"I'm Jacob Black," he said, holding out his hand to shake hers. "You bought my dad's truck."

* * *

I know, I'm super late and thereforth a terrible person. I'm sorry!

I originally hadn't posted in a while because I had some computer issues. I just bought a new one on November first.

The second reason why was because I'd been participating in National Novel Writing Month (a.k.a. NaNoWriMo), which is held for the entire month of November. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's basically a huge writing competition where you attempt to write a full-length novel in a month, so that obviously needed my full attention. I've been drafting what I've written and posting it online!

I haven't abandoned this story at all. In fact, I'm very excited to finish it. I'll see you guys with a new update soon!


	18. LULLABIES

See?! I TOLD you I wasn't abandoning this story! Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **16\. LULLABIES**

"Jacob Black?" I asked, a surprised smile crossing my face. "Oh my God, dude, how have you _been_?"

"Blaire?" The not-so-stranger anymore grinned at me. He had the kind of smile that could put the sun to shame in its brightness. It reminded me of days where we scavenged for the prettiest stones on the beach, maybe wandered too far in the forest, and practical jokes that he took way too seriously devised by two older girls with twin impish smiles. "Wow, it's been forever. Did you move here too?"

"Just for the semester," I said. "My mom and dad are getting a divorce so my mom and I are living with Waylon until we get a new place in Seattle."

The smile faded. "Oh. I'm sorry to hear about that," he said. I shrugged helplessly.

"It's fine," I said, glancing back at Bella. "You know, we were just talking about beach bonfires and the fact that Bella doesn't remember them and I do. Now I think I'm the one with the messed up memory. She probably doesn't remember them because I always hung out with you and your sisters."

"Aw, now I'm sad," he said. "How could you forget about me? We used to be thick as thieves!"

I laughed. "I'm sorry! I remember now. Hey, how are Rachel and Rebecca anyway? They're his older sisters," I told Bella. "We used to hang out with them whenever we came here and my mom wanted a break while Waylon and Charlie went fishing."

"Oh," Bella said. "I remember them. Are they here?"

"No," Jacob said. "Rachel got a scholarship to Washington State and Rebecca married a Samoan surfer – she lives in Hawaii now."

" _Washington State?_ " I asked incredulously just as Bella said, "Married? Wow."

Jacob smiled ruefully at me. "We tried to talk her out of it, really," he said before turning to Bella. "And yes, she's happy so that's what matters. How do you like the truck?"

"I love it," Bella said. "It runs great."

Jacob laughed, the smile coming back full-force. "Yeah, it's just really slow," he said. "I was so relieved when Charlie bought it. My dad wouldn't let me work on building another car when we had a perfectly good vehicle right there."

"It's not that slow," Bella said.

"Have you even tried to go over sixty?" He challenged.

"Well, no," she said.

"Good." He grinned. "Don't."

I laughed. Bella smiled. "At least it does great in a collision," she said.

"I don't think a tank could take out that old monster," he said, laughing with me.

"So you build cars?" She asked.

"When I have free time and parts," he said. "You wouldn't happen to know where I could get my hands on a master cylinder for a 1986 Volkswagen Rabbit?"

"Sorry," Bella said. "I haven't seen any, but I'll keep my eyes open for you."

I arched a brow at Bella, somewhat surprised at how easily she talked to him. Usually getting any sort of rapport from her was like pulling teeth.

Jacob grinned, giving her a smile that was meant for her and _only_ her. A smile that suddenly made me feel like a third wheel.

"You know Bella, Jacob?" Jessica suddenly asked.

"I've pretty much known Bella _and_ Blaire since I was born," Jacob replied, his smile still in force.

"Oh," Jessica said, giving me a weird look from her seat across the dwindling fire. I frowned at her. "It's too bad none of the Cullens could come out today. Didn't anyone think to invite them?"

What the hell was Jessica trying to get at? My brows scrunched together, but when her eyes briefly met mine again, she looked away, as if ashamed. The realization dawned on me. "I don't know, Jessica," I said. "I think it's more of a shame that Lauren couldn't come and ask those questions herself."

Bella smacked me with her arm while awkwardness settled around everyone else. I turned on her with a glare, but before I could say anything, the oldest boy in the group spoke up.

"The Cullens? You mean Doctor Cullen's family?" He asked.

"I'm pretty sure," I said, looking at Jessica. "That _is_ who you meant, right?"

It was in that moment Jessica Stanley knew she fucked up. Everyone else was looking at her now too. "Um, yeah," she said. "D – Do you know them?"

"They don't come here," he said. That was it. I thought that was weird, but I was too busy being satisfied with the way Jessica quickly turned to talk to Mike and abandon the subject altogether.

"So is Forks driving you insane yet?" Jacob asked. I turned to him and Bella again for the sake of avoiding another confrontation.

"Oh, I'd say that's an understatement," Bella said.

"Hey, what about me?" I asked.

"You're part of the problem!" She laughed. I shrugged helplessly when Jacob looked at me.

"That might be true," I admitted, making him laugh.

"Glad to see some things haven't changed," he said.

"We should go walk down the beach," Bella suddenly said, throwing me off completely. I looked at her, but she was only looking at Jacob. Cue me feeling like a third wheel again…

"Sure!" Jacob said, already on his feet and leading the way back up the beach toward the forest we just hiked through.

I debated on whether or not to leave them alone since there seemed to be some type of thing going on between them. Bella needed a little fun. I just hoped if things progressed with Jacob, Edward wouldn't be too mad and convince Jasper to bail on that potential trip to Seattle, but maybe those plans were already dashed with the way he acted on Thursday…

"Hey, Blaire!" Tyler shouted, drawing me out of my thoughts. I turned to look at him just as Bella started clambering over the log we were sitting on to follow Jacob. Tyler stood across the fire pit with some of the other guys from the reservation – one of which was holding a soccer ball. I sat up a little straighter. "We need one more to fill a team!"

"Don't you want to come with, Blaire?" Bella asked.

"Uh, let me think," I said as I stood up. "The last player on a soccer team or an awkward, unwilling chaperone…" I pretended to weigh my options as Bella's face turned red. "I'm going with soccer. Don't keep her too long, Black."

I waved them off and picked my way around the fire pit to meet Tyler, Mike, and a few other boys that found a less rocky part of the beach to start their game.

 **V**

The game ended with the sky darkening and threatening to rain. When we piled into the car, I ended up sandwiched tightly between Bella and Angela. Everyone was quieter on the drive back to Newton's Olympic Outfitters, tired from the trip.

"So how was seeing Jacob again?" I asked as Bella drove me back to my uncle's house. She had this weird, distant expression and she barely paid me any attention at all.

"Huh?" Bella asked. "Oh, it was fine. I don't think I remember him the way you do."

"I only hung out with them a couple of times," I said. "I think I would always come to Forks before you or something. He seemed to like you."

She cringed, obvious guilt flashing across her face. "I probably led him on."

"What?" I asked, laughing despite myself. "Why? Oh well, it's fine. He's like, what, sixteen?"

"He said he just turned fifteen," Bella said, grimacing. I did too. Then I laughed harder.

"Oh my God, what the hell?" I said. So much for a thing going on between them. "He's a _baby_! What's wrong with you, you cradle-robber!"

"Can we just forget it even happened?" She demanded. "It was awkward and I regret it, okay?"

"Whatever," I said. "He's probably flattered anyway."

"I guess," she said.

We lapsed into silence again. After a few minutes of watching the darkening scenery whip past us with rain pelting the windshield, I spoke up again. "So what did you end up talking about?"

She shook her head. "Nothing," she said.

Whatever it was definitely wasn't _nothing_. In fact, with how distracted she was, it seemed like something important. But I'd let her keep it to herself for now. She seemed mortified enough by flirting with a guy two years younger than her.

She dropped me off at home with a mumbled goodbye, which I returned. Her mood soured mine. I jogged into the house just as I felt raindrops descend from the sky, brushing past my mom's car as I went, noticing Waylon's hatchback wasn't in its usual parking spot.

"Waylon?" My mom called as I let myself into the house.

"Just me!" I shouted back. I smelled the air, my mouth watering when I recognized the scent of my mom's marinated chicken breasts. It was her signature dish. "Smells good, I'm starving."

I met my mom at the kitchen. I looked past her at the oven, where her marinated-baked chicken rested on the stove top. She must have just pulled it out of the oven. When I looked back up at her, I frowned at the look on her face. She looked concerned.

"He wasn't pulling in the driveway?" She asked.

"Uh... no?"

She hummed thoughtfully and walked out of the kitchen. I traded places with her, pulling out a fork from one of the drawers when I also noticed a covered pot sitting next to it. "Did you make rice pilaf too?" I asked as I reached for the lid –

" _Don't_!" My mom snapped. I dropped the fork on the counter and sighed loudly.

"Come on," I begged. "I'm _starving_! I bet he's still at the marina or something."

"He told me he was leaving at three," she said. I frowned, glancing at the clock on the oven. It was five-forty-five now.

"The marina's only a ten-minute drive," I said, looking back at my mom. She was nodding.

"Is there a game on tonight?" She asked.

"Yeah," I said. "Basketball. Do you think he's maybe watching it at Charlie's? I'll call Bella and see if he's there."

I pulled out my phone and called her. She answered on the third ring. " _Bee?_ " She asked, sounding a little perkier than she did on the drive home.

"Hey, Bells," I said. "Is Waylon at your house? Apparently he was supposed to be at home before I was."

" _He's not here_ ," she said. " _I just pulled into the driveway and I don't see his car. M_ _aybe Char – Dad knows something._ "

I didn't comment on the way she almost called her own dad Charlie. Instead, I passed my mom the phone. "Mom, talk to Charlie."

My mom reached out and took the phone just as I heard Charlie's gruff voice on the other end. "Charlie, hi," she said. "I take it Waylon's not with you?"

I only heard a muttered response, but I already knew the answer. My mom frowned. "I don't know, I just thought he may have been distracted by something else with the boat. Do you know if he usually works on it this late? I mean, it's already raining. Is there enough light and cover to do anything?"

She paused so Charlie could talk more. I pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and debated on whether or not I could sneak a bite of the rice on the stove while my mom was distracted.

"All right," she suddenly said. I turned around, catching her just as she started up the stairs. I inched back toward the chicken and rice, listening to her muffled voice after she walked out of my sight on the second floor.

I didn't know what she was saying, but when I didn't hear her voice anymore, I sidled up next to the stove and pulled the lid up. A cloud of steam went with it, releasing the butter-and-herbs fragrance of rice pilaf. I grinned and snuck a small bite and darted away from the stove when I heard my mom walk back down the stairs.

My self-satisfied smile quickly slipped off my face when I noticed she came back down dressed in jeans instead of sweatpants and a heavy jacket over her University of Washington T-shirt.

"Charlie and I are going to the marina," she said as she slipped on a ratty pair of tennis shoes. She handed me my phone.

"Do you want me to come with you?" I asked as I took it.

"No, I want you to stay here in case he gets here while we're gone," she said. "Charlie thinks he may be stuck on the side of the road in that damn hatchback. I should have told him to take my car."

She went into the kitchen and fixed a plate, piling it high with strips of baked chicken breast and rice pilaf – filling it with more food than I was sure I could eat. She placed it on the table and motioned for me to sit down. "Go ahead and eat, I'm not sure how long it'll be until we get back."

I sat in front of the plate, watching her as she grabbed a knife and a new fork and two or three napkins and set them in front of me. I took another sip of my water, not very hungry anymore. I picked and fluffed the rice with my fork. "Call me if he gets here," she instructed. "Start calling him in the meantime. I couldn't get through to him, but maybe you can."

Charlie made it to the house in record time. "See you in a bit!" My mom said as she walked out the door.

As soon as Charlie's car pulled away and the brightness of his lights and the noise of the engine faded with the distance, an uncomfortable silence filled up the house. It was stifling.

I ate what I could off of the monstrous plate my mom left me, trying to call Waylon the entire time. His phone would ring and ring and ring until it finally went to voicemail. It was weird, didn't phones usually just go straight to voicemail if they ran out of power or had no service?

After I ate, I put up the rest of the food in storage containers and cleaned the dishes, moving to the tempo of the rain pattering against the roof. After I cleaned the kitchen, I walked into the living room to turn the game on and called Waylon a fifth time. After four rings, I expected it to go to voicemail again –

But the call picked up.

"Waylon?" I asked.

It was silent on the other line.

"Hello?" I asked. "U – Uncle Way?"

Silence.

Despite the warmth in the house, goosebumps erupted across my skin. This wasn't right.

"Waylon –"

The line went dead.

I tried calling again and again, but I didn't get another answer. Maybe he was just in a bad area and had no reception, like on the side of the road like my mom said. That didn't stop the dread settling in my stomach like a dead weight.

The world outside was black and the rain continued. The noise was usually a calming one for me, a constant lullaby that made me feel grounded. Right now, it put me on edge.

I debated on whether or not to call Bella or leave my phone free in the event that Waylon or my mom would call me. I turned the TV on and kept the volume on low and my phone's ringer on high. I watched the TV without processing any of the information. It was only a marker of time because I didn't want to stare at a clock.

The basketball game started and ended. Waylon would have been excited, because his team won. Waylon…

My thoughts turned in an upsetting direction when I thought about the slamming screen door, and my own door creaking open last night. A bear couldn't slam screen doors, could it? I thought about the animal attack in Mason county and how it seemed to really bug Waylon that the trail had gone cold. How he may have moved on to a new case that took up all his attention…

What if the cold case and the new case were one in the same? What if everyone had given up on the attack except for Waylon?

There was one way to find out.

I stood up from the couch and walked toward my uncle's room. I was emboldened by my epiphany, brave enough to grab his door and pull it open without a moment's hesitation.

Normally, I remembered Waylon's room as sterile and empty – a practice he always credited to his time in the army. It had only ever been decorated with the basics, and maybe also the occasional framed drawing made by a younger version of me. It was never really messy.

Walking in now, it was like I'd entered another person's house entirely.

Files, pictures, and loose pieces of paper with his messy scrawl were splayed all over his unmade bed and his dresser and even his floor. I started for the bed and picked up the first piece of paper I could get my hands on: a _MISSING_ flyer of a twenty-five-year-old girl. She'd been missing for almost a month now, judging by the date on the page. But she'd apparently disappeared in Port Angeles, a town that was thirty minutes away. Why would my uncle care about a missing person's case from there?

There were a couple of other _MISSING_ posters too, but the people on the pages didn't look similar. They ranged in ages, genders, and races. They were from Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia –

I wished I knew what it meant. Did it correlate with the animal attack at Grisham Mill? Or maybe this _was_ a completely different case. I sighed and pushed the flyers aside, revealing even more papers underneath.

I caught glimpses of medical articles and psychological essays. They were obviously photocopies from books. I pushed them aside, but just as I did, I caught the phrase, "Renfield's syndrome." I skimmed over the page –

" ** _Clinical vampirism, more commonly called Renfield's syndrome or Renfield syndrome, is an obsession with drinking blood._** "

"The hell?" I muttered. I pushed it to the side and looked closer at the psychological essays, essays that detailed "cultism" and the type of people that would join them or start them –

Wait, cultism like a _cult_?

What the hell had my uncle gotten into?

I found Waylon's old laptop – a computer that probably could have been used in the Stone Ages – under the mess. I slowly crawled on his bed and sat amongst all the paperwork and flipped it open. The screen lit up and prompted for a password, which was easy to guess. My name and my very first soccer number. I learned it was Waylon's go-to when I was fourteen.

His email was the first window open. I clicked on his most recently read email, titled _No Subject_. When it opened, there were seven files attached at the bottom. I clicked the first one.

Doctor Carlisle Cullen's face popped up. Well, a photocopy his license did. I frowned and scrolled down, revealing official-looking documents –

Background information.

I quickly exited out of that file and clicked another one.

Esme Cullen was next.

The one after that was Emmett Cullen.

Jasper Cullen was after that.

Why was my uncle accessing the Cullens' information? Wasn't that illegal? They hadn't done anything wrong that I knew of and it seemed like the information Waylon pulled from their records concluded the same.

But what if they weren't innocent? What if the records I was looking at were totally false?

What if they _were_ in witness protection?

My uncle had other tabs open as well, but one shocked me more than all the rest. It read, " _Vampires A-Z_."

A chill skittered down my spine.

I clicked on it.

" ** _Throughout the vast shadowy world of ghosts and demons there is no figure so terrible, no figure so dreaded and abhorred with such fearful fascination, as the vampire, who is himself neither ghost nor demon, but partakes in the dark natures and possesses the mysterious and terrible qualities of both._** "

"What the fucking hell," I said to myself.

" ** _If there is in this world a well-attested account, it is that of the vampires. Nothing is lacking: official reports, affidavits of well-known people, of surgeons, of priests, of magistrates; the judicial proof is most complete. And with all that, who is there who believes in vampires?_** "

Not normal sane people, if that was what the quoted Reverend Montague Summers was trying to get at. Not people like me and certainly not people like my Uncle Waylon Forge.

There were articles underneath the quotation, but I couldn't look at them. I had enough.

This was insane, it had to be. Maybe my uncle just happened to be looking up two things at once – his weird case and vampires. The two couldn't be connected. My uncle didn't even believe in _Sasquatch_! That was ten times more reasonable than… than…

I slowly moved the cursor and clicked on Waylon's email again.

No. No way. The Cullens couldn't be vampires. They were just people. Just regular, pale, extremely good-looking _people_. Vampires weren't even _real_ and if they were, they couldn't go in sunlight!

But wasn't it always cloudy in Seattle? Wasn't it even _more_ overcast in Forks –?

No. No freaking _way_.

If the Cullens were vampires, then that hd to mean Bella had been right all along. Vampires were super-strong and super-fast, if Bram Stoker or Anne Rice taught me anything. Edward could have stopped the van with his bare hands. He could have saved us.

But that meant Jasper Hale…

No. No!

My phone rang. I jumped, a ragged yelp tore from my mouth. I grabbed it from my pocket and answered it immediately after I checked the caller ID. " _Mom_ –"

" _Blaire_ ," my mom gasped. Her voice was thick.

"Mom?" My heart raced. I slammed my uncle's laptop shut and left the room as fast as I could. "Is everything okay? Was Waylon's car messed up? I need to talk to him –"

A sob broke on the other line.

I froze in the middle of the hallway.

" _Bee_ ," my mom said. " _We – We found Waylon but – something happened –_ "

She started crying, bawling really. I stopped breathing. As she continued to cry, a lump formed in my throat.

" _An… an animal_ ," she started to explain. " _It must've found him while he was working on the boat – He – He didn't make it –_ "

My eyes rimmed with black and my head felt shockingly light. I dropped to my knees. I didn't have the strength to hold my phone. It slipped out of my useless fingers and clattered on the floor. Ugly, hot, fat tears streamed down my face.

" _Blaire?_ " My mom said. " _Blaire!_ "

I let out one hoarse scream. I collapsed on the ground on my side, staring at my uncle's closed door. Every time I blinked, I saw Jasper Hale's hideous, _monstrous_ face.

" _BLAIRE!_ "

 **V**

* * *

So while this chapter was kind of a breeze to write, I know the next chapter will be even harder.

Let me know what you think!


	19. BREAK

So, I recently moved my story from a flash drive to Google Docs, so I apologize if there are any weird formatting errors, but I don't think it'll impede the story too much. If so, let me know and I'll see if I can fix it!

Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **17\. BREAK**

" _We'll get through this._ "

I wouldn't.

" _It'll be okay._ "

It wouldn't.

Nothing would ever be okay again.

" _I'll be home soon._ "

I barely listened to my mom's promises. She said them over and over again on the phone, chanting them like a mantra, needing them more than me. I continued to lay in the middle of the hallway, my head buzzing and my lungs closing in tight.

" _Charlie called Bella_ ," she said. " _She should be there in five minutes._ "

That was the only thing that made me pull myself together. After I hung up, I launched into action.

I cleared out all of Waylon's strange, case-related items from his room. I threw piles of papers in my closet and stuffed them under my bed, unsure of what I would do with the information, but determined to sort through it and… and…

I didn't know what. But I'd sort it out.

I just knew that it was all connected. That Uncle Waylon's theories and this... attack...

I didn't know how, but it was. It just had to be.

Miraculously, I finished packing everything away by the time Bella knocked on my door. She was a mess of flailing social awkwardness but she was heartfelt all the same. She practically tripped into me and wrapped her arms around me tight just as I broke down again. She steered us to sitting on the couch and let me cry, since I doubted she knew what else she could do. It was fine. It was what I needed anyway.

I wanted to tell her about the weird things my uncle seemed to relate to the Cullens, but I held back. I didn't even know what they were myself and I didn't want to worry her.

My mom and Charlie came home late that night. When I saw my mom, the tears started all over again. I slept in her room after Bella and Charlie went home. I was too afraid to be in the same room as those papers and that laptop.

When I slept, I dreamt of Jasper Hale in the parking lot.

 **V**

Early Sunday morning, Bella and Charlie were back with breakfast from The Carver Café. I picked at the food. Bella sat across from me and we sometimes looked at each other while my mom and Charlie made calls. They were constantly on their phones.

"Your dad is on his way here," my mom suddenly said, jarring me out of my cold, soggy hashbrowns. "He should be here in a couple of hours."

I tensed. I glared at the suddenly offensive potatoes and dropped my fork. "We don't need him," I muttered.

My mom sighed, but said nothing else. She got another call she had to answer.

"Can we go to your house?" I asked Bella when I was sure my mom was out of earshot. Bella's eyes widened. " _Please_. I don't want to see him."

Slowly, she nodded.

I stayed at her house all day in a strange state of being half-asleep and half-awake, completely numb to everything in the world. Bella didn't bother trying to pull me out of the shell I constructed for myself, instead she sat in silence with me. I sat on her bed and worked on my English essay, flipping through her worn copy of _Macbeth_. The stupid assignment wasn't even due until Wednesday, but I needed something to do. I didn't want to let my thoughts wander.

My mom tried to call me, but I refused to answer and let her attempts go to voicemail. When _**DAD**_ flashed across my screen, I didn't give him the satisfaction of waiting.

Bella was on her computer and she glanced back at me every so often, probably checking on me. I didn't look back at her, pretending to be too absorbed with the mindless task of fleshing out my essay that I wouldn't be much cause for concern. After a while, she stopped looking, lost in whatever she was reading online.

Half an hour later, she let out a sharp breath. The sound cut through the thick silence of the room. I jumped, my pen skidding across the paper. I frowned when I looked up at her.

"Sorry," she said as she jammed her finger into the power button of her computer and stood up. "Do you want to go on a walk?"

A walk sounded nice, and also _not_ like the Bella I knew. But I didn't want to question it.

I shrugged and lurched up from the bed. I followed her downstairs and out the door.

The sky was a darker gray than usual. It was like the rain I saw far off in Waylon's backyard when I first moved here had finally rolled in. It looked like it was about to break.

I turned when I didn't hear Bella behind me, halfway between her driveway and the main road ahead of us. I frowned when I saw she was trying to cross the lawn. "Where -"

She jerked her head toward the green wall edging along her front yard. "The forest," she said by way of explanation.

I tensed as I watched her walk closer to the forest's edge, remembering the way my uncle had his gun pointed at such similar-looking trees. He'd looked defiant, strong enough to take on whatever force stalked our house beyond the undergrowth.

I would look like that.

Despite whatever I found in those files, I would be just as fierce to protect my friends and family as Waylon had been that night. I would take everything he taught me and sort through those files, find the answers to questions that I decided to take on as my own, and finish his case. I'd see it through to the end… no matter what that end might be.

There was nothing to seal the promise besides the wind and the scent of rain it carried, the grass and mud giving in under my boots, and the back of Bella's coat as I followed her into the forest. That was fine, though. It seemed like what I just swore myself to was too big, too important, maybe even too impossible to bring to life with words.

I let Bella lead the way as I studied the trees around us, paying attention to the way we came, wondering if wild animals or… monsters were watching us in the hidden, dark places of the forest.

"Let's not go too far," I said.

Bella hummed in answer, leading the way just off the trail to sit on a fallen tree. I stood next to her, watching the woods. We were far enough back that I couldn't see her house anymore. I tried to downplay the fear licking its way up my spine. Slowly, I sat next to her.

She didn't say anything. I didn't either. We were obviously too lost in our own thoughts to even speak.

I raked through my memories, desperately trying to figure out what end my uncle had reached that the Cullens, Renfield's syndrome, and cults had something in common. But then there was also the troubling website, " _Vampires A-Z_." How did that fit into everything?

The possibilities were endless. The most realistic thing I could think of was that the Cullens were part of some… some _vampire_ cult. They could have developed Renfield's syndrome as a result. Or maybe they just always had it. Maybe? It seemed pretty far fetched, but what else could it be?

The answer slithered into my forethoughts before I could lock it away. _Vampires_. Not a vampire cult. Just vampires.

 _Just_ vampires. I wanted to laugh out loud at myself, but when Jasper Hale's demonic face flittered to life in the back of my mind, I sobered up fast.

I forced myself past the absurdity and thought about it logically. Or as logically as I could. Bella said she saw Edward Cullen when I saw Jasper Hale during that crash. Logically, I knew that couldn't have been a coincidence, even though I'd wished it would be. _If_ they were vampires, it would explain how they got there so fast. Weren't vampires supposed to be super-fast?

 _If_ they were vampires, it made sense why Jasper Hale reacted the way he did during the crash. I was bleeding. They needed blood to survive.

I shuddered.

"Are you okay?" Bella asked.

"I'm fine," I said.

The rain finally broke overhead. It pattered gently through the trees, but I never felt a single drop.

Yes, _I_ was fine. Somehow, miraculously, I was okay. How did I survive that crash? Deep down, I always knew I wasn't really the one that pulled Bella to safety. It just didn't make sense that neither of us died. But if _they_ saved us, or tired to... _Why_? And how did I survive being with Jasper Hale, in those moments were I was bleeding, at all?

The answer came to me as easily as a light flipped on with a switch.

Easy.

 _If_ the Cullens were vampires, they wouldn't want to raise suspicion. They wanted to be like wolves in sheep's clothing. They _wanted_ to keep a low profile, so they could pick the people of this town off with ease. One by one.

 _That_ was what my uncle knew. Everything else, from the cults to the Renfield's syndrome, they were all steps taken to rule out the most rational explanations. Only then did Waylon realize he was dealing with something that couldn't be explained rationally.

That was when they killed him.

I shot up to my feet.

"Blaire?"

"We should go," I said, pulling up the hood of my jacket. "It's raining."

"Oh," she said. "Yeah, okay."

She followed me out of the forest. I was on hyper-alert, straining my senses, wondering if they were out there, _right now_ , watching us.

Would I even be able to stop them if they tried to attack?

Well, _if_ I was right about them being vampires, Edward Cullen could stop a van all by himself, so my bet was probably not. But I could try. I _would_ try, if it came down to it.

I let out the largest sigh of relief when we broke out of the forest and stepped foot on the open lawn, but we didn't slow down until we made it into the house.

Bella and I spent the rest of the day camped out at her dining room table. She decided to work on her essay too.

My mom called five more times. I finally took pity on her and texted her that I was spending the night at Bella's. I knew I wouldn't be able to hide from my dad much longer, but I didn't think it was such a terrible thing if I delayed the inevitable.

Charlie came home. He hardly said a word to either of us.

 **V**

The next morning, the sun was shining.

"Don't -" I started when Bella reached to open her window.

She twisted around. "Why?" She asked.

I shook my head. "You don't know what's out there," I said.

She looked at me in surprise, but I took the change of clothes Bella loaned me and took a shower. When I got out, I grabbed my backpack and walked down the stairs while Bella took a shower next. I made a fresh pot of coffee and waited downstairs at the kitchen table.

Charlie walked into the kitchen not even five minutes later. He eyed my backpack next to my seat suspiciously. "I can take you home, if you want," he said.

I shrugged as the machine percolated. "Thank you, but I'm going to school with Bells today."

He frowned. "You think that's a good idea?"

I nodded once just as the machine steamed to a halt. We looked at the pot in the kitchen, darkened by the black liquid that filled the house with a welcoming, earthy aroma.

I had everything figured out. My parents were at Waylon's house, they would be safe. _If_ the Cullens _were_ vampires, they had only been after Waylon because of what he knew. I bet as far as they were concerned, they'd gotten off easy.

I'd make sure that wasn't the case. I just… didn't know how I would achieve that.

But I knew the bulk of that creepy family went to Forks High. There was no way in hell I'd let Bella walk into the school _blindly_ all by herself. Not when I knew the monster in Jasper Hale was most entirely real and it existed in every single one of his siblings.

"I just need the distraction," I admitted, quietly.

Charlie nodded and didn't say anything else. What could he say to a kid grieving her closest family member's death? What could _anyone_ say? Nothing. They wouldn't pry because they wouldn't want to know what I was feeling.

Bella practically tripped down the stairs some time later and we left for school.

The battlefield.

A soft breeze cut through the truck's open windows as Bella pulled into a parking space, ruffling my hair. I scanned the parking lot intently for the sight of a silver car or motorcycle, but I didn't see them as I got out of the car, mainly because we were one of the first ones at the school. For once, I was relieved.

"Do you want to sit outside?" Bella asked as we walked toward the school.

I shrugged, but I was way too pleased with the suggestion. We ended up sitting outside of the cafeteria at picnic tables, which gave me the a perfect view of the school's student parking lot. Bella pulled out her homework, even though I knew she finished everything, but I didn't say anything about it. Instead, I pulled out a borrowed Jane Austen novel and pretended to read, but I mainly watched the parking lot out of the corner of my eye every time I saw a car drive into the lot. My body was as tight as a coiled spring, ready to explode a the first flash of silver.

I didn't exactly know what I would do if I saw it, but I knew it would be _something_.

"Bee-Squared!" Someone shouted after I found myself staring at the same paragraph for the past thirty minutes.

I looked up, relieved and put off by the distraction, watching Mike Newton walk toward us. He offered a small wave and sat down next to Bella. His eyes were large when he looked at me.

"God, Bee, I - I heard about your uncle," he said. I held my breath just as a sharp pain pierced my chest. "I'm _really_ sorry."

I gripped the book, blinking past the tears threatening to break. I looked down at the blurred words on the pages. "I don't really want to talk about it."

"I get that," he said quickly. "I'll let everyone else know too."

I sighed shakily. "Thanks, Mike."

Mike stumbled over conversation topics regarding the weather and what we did yesterday. Bella took pity on him and talked to him about the essay, but my attention was on the parking lot again. More people were here, but not the ones I'd been expecting.

Well, if they were vampires, it made sense that they wouldn't be out in the sunlight -

"We should get to class," Bella said, putting away her books. She reached for me, but I already stood up and threw my backpack on my shoulder before joining her side.

 **V**

I didn't talk for the rest of the day, there wasn't much of a need for me to. I assumed everyone in Forks knew about Waylon at this point. Mike must have gotten to the greater population of Forks High faster than I gave him credit for. No one spoke to me, except for a few quiet "I'm so sorrys" that fell silent on my ears. The teachers didn't call on me even when I was sure they knew I was spacing out through their classes.

I drifted from class to class, walking with my friends, listening to Jessica ramble about the dance. She asked if Bella and I wanted to go dress-shopping with her, Angela, and ( _maybe_ ) Lauren. I agreed easily. Right now, I'd take any opportunity to stay as far away from Waylon's house as possible. I didn't even care if Lauren was somehow involved.

I only resurfaced when we were on our way to lunch. My body hummed with adrenaline as I thought about who would be waiting for us there. I didn't know what to expect from myself, which normally would have been terrifying to think about if I wasn't so singularly focused on what lay on the other side of the cafeteria's double-doors.

I walked faster than normal, spurring Bella and Jessica's pace. They didn't even notice.

I felt half-wild watching Jessica open one of the doors way too slowly for my sanity. When the door was finally open, I didn't even pretend to look anywhere else except the Cullen's usual table.

It was empty.

Disappointment and frustration washed through me hard and fast. I wanted to throw the books in my hands to the ground and break the closest thing.

Gone. What if they were _gone_? What if they were smart enough to skip town after… after… I'd never see them again. I would never get the answers to Waylon's questions. My promise would be broken before I could even _try_ to see it through.

Wait… What if they were cleaning up the rest of Waylon's mess at home?

Tears welled up in my eyes as terror paralyzed me.

"Um… Blaire?"

God, I really hated the way Jessica Stanley said my name sometimes. _Blay-er_? It sounded like metal scraping against itself, scratchy and grating. I wanted to call her out on it, tell her I never added any extra syllables to _her_ name, but I knew it wouldn't do any good.

I left the cafeteria without a word, practically fleeing to the front office. On my way there, I called my mom. It rang once, twice, three times, oh God -

" _Blaire?_ " My mom said. I choked on a sob of relief. She was okay. " _Blaire, honey, what's wrong?_ "

"Come get me," I demanded. Anything to get her out of that house. "Please. _Please_ come get me."

" _I'm on my way._ "

I sat hard on one of the stone benches in front of the school, shoving my phone in the pocket of my jacket before I covered my face in my hands and cried.

 **V**

* * *

Thanks for reading! As always, your comments and views really mean the world to me! It's been an intense past couple of weeks and I love being able to post my work on here and have so many wonderful people responding with so much support. Thank you! I'll see you guys with an update soon!

Let me know if there were any formatting issues with the story that I need to change!


	20. SNARE

Hey, guys! Thanks for waiting! I hope you enjoy the next installment!

* * *

 **18\. SNARE**

Dinner that night was silent.

Only forks tapping glass bowls could be heard.

Tension buzzed in the air.

I could hardly look at the pasta in front of me because my focus kept shifting to the man sitting across from me.

My dad ate slowly, but steadily. His eyes remained fixed on his plate. He hardly said a word to me when my mom brought me back to the house. He hardly even looked at me.

The bond between us was fractured. I wondered if it would ever be able to heal.

My parents talked quietly, saying things I didn't want to hear. Things about Waylon's funeral arrangements, mostly.

I let myself become invisible throughout it all. I didn't want to exist.

Instead I chose to stay watchful of everything around the house. I listened and jumped at every sound. I thought about how fast I would have to be to reach Waylon's gun-safe if something came to the house. I wondered if they were outside now, waiting for… What were they waiting for?

I understood why my uncle had been so tired all the time. This knowledge was a burden. It was terrifying. It made me feel so small and helpless. How could I stand against something so dark and monstrous alone? It was impossible.

And it wasn't like I could ever bring anyone else into this. They'd probably think I was insane. No, no one needed to know. Like Waylon, I had to handle this on my own.

While my parents handled Waylon's final affairs in the living room, I stole the hunting rifle Waylon taught me how to use only a couple of weeks ago out of his room. I barely knew how to use it, the hunk of metal was heavy and severe in my hands, but it would be better than nothing. I hid it under my bed.

I didn't sleep that night. Instead I sat on my bed, the gun settled across my lap, staring out of my window. I was waiting for something to happen.

 **V**

The next morning, it was sunny again. Something in me knew the Cullens wouldn't be out today, so I didn't bother trying to go to school.

Breakfast passed the same way as dinner last night. It was quiet. Tense.

Bella texted to check in with me and let me know Jessica changed the dress-shopping for today. Apparently Mike took her on a date last night.

The word "date" and its various meanings hit me with a weight similar to a freight train.

"We came up with a date," my mom told me quietly over oatmeal. My dad said nothing. "We were thinking next Saturday."

The idea of a funeral actually happening, thinking of Waylon actually being gone... It was too much. Too horrifying. I would never see him again -

"Can I go out with Bella, Jessica, Angela, and Lauren tonight?" I blurted out. "They… They want to go dress-shopping."

 _Please, please let me go. Let me get out of this place and put off saying goodbye for just one more day._

"No," my dad said. I glared at him, but of course, he wasn't even looking at me. "You should stay here."

Before I could say anything, my mom actually beat me to the punch.

"I'm not sure, Bee," she said. "There's a lot that needs to be done here and I could really use your help."

Tears welled in my eyes. I didn't say anything else.

 **V**

I stayed holed up in my room for the rest of the day. I showered and dressed in jeans and a white T-shirt. I mulled over Waylon's files and pretended to know what they didn't mean, just so I could retrace his steps and make sure he came to the same conclusion as I did.

He had.

I could see it all, plain as day. Why else would he have the Cullens' background checks on his computer? I wondered how long he knew, how long he just sat with this information and no one else to tell it to? I bet he felt just as isolated as I did now.

I wondered what would have happened to him if he told someone, anyone. What if I could have learned about everything in his room sooner? Would he still be here?

His house suddenly felt too small. I was suffocating, struggling to make sense of everything I now knew. It made no sense, but somehow I felt like I failed Waylon by not learning the truth sooner. If I hadn't been so caught up in my life, maybe I could have seen something -

 _Knock, knock._ "Honey?"

I set my school notebook on top of Waylon's papers just as my mom opened the door halfway. She smiled sadly at me, making me wonder if her smiles would ever actually be genuinely happy again.

"Your dad and I are going to the funeral home," she said. "Do you want to come?"

I didn't think I could shake my head 'no' fast enough. "I can stay here," I said. "I'll be okay."

"Okay, honey," she said. "Just call me if you need anything. Depending on how long we are, we can also get dinner too. How does pizza sound?"

I shrugged. "That's fine," I said.

"All right, sweetheart. I'll call you when we leave," she said. "Love you."

"Love you too," I replied.

She walked away, leaving my door open, and I listened to her and my dad leave the house. I listened to one of their cars rev to life and speed away from the house. I sagged in relief.

Then my phone vibrated with a text, startling me out of my thoughts. It was a text from Bella, letting me know she and Jessica were on their way. I forgot to tell them I wouldn't be able to go with them tonight.

But in the middle of the text I started writing, I wondered why I couldn't. What was the worst that could happen? Would my parents _ground_ me?

I mean, I could only hope.

So I deleted my original text and told Bella that I was ready whenever she and Jessica were. I pulled on a green army jacket and transferred my wallet from my backpack into a small black crossbody before I slipped on a pair of white Vans, the ones I wore on my first day of soccer practice.

By the time I made sure all of the paperwork and the gun was securely hidden from my parents, Jessica's white Mercury rolled to a stop in front of Waylon's house. I practically ran out to meet them, the music blaring out of the car was a siren song, along with Jessica, Bella, and Angela's smiling faces.

 **V**

The drive to Port Angeles was filled with excited chatter, impromptu karaoke performances, and a _ton_ of gossip. Mainly it revolved around Jessica's date with Mike and her desire to get to the "first kiss" stage of their relationship and grilling Angela about her ideal guy. When she wouldn't budge, Jessica groaned. "Lauren would be able to figure it out," she said. "She's, like, _super_ intuitive like that."

"Where is Lauren anyway?" I asked, even though I was kind of glad she kept bowing out of all our mutual social events. "I thought she was coming too."

"Oh, she had some stuff to do apparently," Jessica said. "To be honest, I think she doesn't want to step on your toes with the whole… um…"

The almost-cleating? I shrugged. "It's okay," I said. "I was really upset before, but I forgive her. I just don't want to deal with anymore drama."

"Right!" Jessica said, eager to affirm. "I'm sure she'd be happy to hear that."

As we walked into the town's biggest (and only) department store, we tried to decipher what the dance's dress code - semi-formal - even meant. Angela, Jessica, and I all offered our bids as to what it could be and I frowned when I noticed Bella stayed quiet.

"What do you think, Bee?" I asked. "Cocktail dresses or not-too-sparkly evening gowns?"

Bella shrugged helplessly. "I don't know," she admitted. "I've never really been to a dance, so…"

"What?" Jessica squawked. "Didn't you ever go with a boyfriend or something?"

"Not really," she said. "I've never had a boyfriend or anything close. I didn't go out much."

"Why not?" Jessica pressed.

"No one asked me."

I frowned, suddenly wondering what kind of life Bella had before Forks. Surely she had some friends while she was in Phoenix. For as much as she said she missed it, I assumed she had a group almost as tight as the one we had in Forks, but now… Now I was confused. And maybe a little sad. Was Bella really that introverted that she didn't have friends? Did she just wander the hallways of her school alone, her nose constantly buried in books so she didn't have to interact with the world around her?

The saddest thing was I could almost imagine it.

"People ask you here," Jessica said. "And you tell them no."

"What's wrong with that?" I frowned at Jessica. "She doesn't have to fall to the feet of every guy that gives her an ounce of attention."

Jessica scrambled. "That isn't what I meant," she said. "It's just, um, you know, it's -"

"Tyler hasn't asked her," Angela suddenly offered, trying to shift the conversation as we meandered through the juniors' section of the store. I looked at her. "You know, since he's taking you and everything."

My mouth dropped open. "He is _not_ ," I said sharply.

"Really?" Jessica asked. "I thought you liked him. It's why Lauren was mad at you."

"Well she should get over it, I'm not interested," I said before furiously shoving my way through the dress racks. "If she tried to cleat me over some guy, she needs to rethink her priorities."

The group fell into an awkward silence after that, but things quickly picked up again when Jessica and Angela found dresses. Since I felt mad about bad mouthing Jessica, I tried to make up for it with compliments for the dresses and helping them choose shoes and jewelry to match. By the time they were done, I almost wanted to go to the dance too. But it was too late to get a ticket and I knew as soon as I got home, I wouldn't be in the mood anymore.

"We should drop these bags off and walk the boardwalk," Angela suggested as we left the store. "We still have a while before dinner."

"Totally!" Jessica agreed, and I almost did too, until Bella spoke.

"I can meet you guys in an hour," she said. "I actually wanted to check out this bookstore while we were here."

"Oh, well we can do that too," Jessica said, but she didn't seem very enthused by the idea.

"No, no, it's okay," Bella said. "You guys should go have fun, I won't be long."

"That's dumb," I said. "You're not going to walk around here by yourself. We can just split up. I want to see this bookstore too, so Bella and I will meet you guys at La Bella in an hour."

"That works," Angela smiled. "You guys have fun."

"Pick up some hot guys!" Jessica said as I followed Bella down the street.

"You didn't have to come," Bella said. "It's not going to be any fun, you know how I get with books -"

"Yes, but I'm not going to let you walk around town by yourself," I said. "We both don't really know this area well and we both know what a terrible sense of direction you have."

We carried light conversation as we walked past cute little brick shops filled with antiques and expensive clothes on wealthy soccer moms could probably afford. Bella and I made fun of some of the clothes we saw in the windows. When we finally made it to the bookstore, we were both put off.

The store wasn't far off from an occult shop, with crystals and dreamcatchers and the overwhelming smell of incense wafting out of the open doorway. A woman at the counter smiled at us and I smiled back, for the sake of politeness. "Um, do we dare…?" I asked.

Bella was already walking away. I laughed and joined her. "Not a fan of a little witchery?" I asked.

"Definitely not," she said and I didn't blame her. I was pretty over the supernatural too. "Come on, I bet there's another bookstore around here somewhere."

"Probably," I agreed. In a tourist trap like this, I was surprised we hadn't come across a secondhand shop yet.

We walked further downtown until the buildings turned into warehouses and the sun dipped lower in the sky. I barely noticed, too busy stewing in my own thoughts about Waylon, wondering what I would do once I had to go back to school and face the Cullens, now knowing what they really were and what they'd done. How did one even go about _killing_ a vampire -

"We should probably get back," Bella said. "I don't think we're going to find anything like this."

"Yeah, you're right," I said.

After making a turn we thought would take us back to the main part of town, we realized we were lost. I straightened up. The Cullens would just have to wait. How the hell did we get lost? Had I really been that distracted?

"We… We just need to find the boardwalk," I said.

"Right," Bella agreed. "I think it's down this street."

We turned down another corner just as four grungy men did the same. I stiffened, setting my jaw as one of them locked eyes with me. I hooked my arm securely around Bella's and pulled her down the street, looking away to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible. I didn't know what part of this town we'd lost ourselves in, but I knew it probably wasn't the safest kind.

"Hey, there!" One of them called. Bella looked up and I tried to yank her along.

"Um, hello," she said. I glared at her, then back at the men I was trying to put behind us.

They'd slowed down, one of them had completely pivoted around and made to walk toward us. I pulled Bella even closer to me. "Let's go," I told her and pulled her away.

The men laughed. "Aw, what's the matter, _Red_?" One of them growled out. I clenched my teeth at the name. "Don't you want your friend to have some fun?"

"Maybe that's her _girlfriend_ ," one of them jeered.

"Fuck off!" I shouted back at them before pulling Bella around the next bend. Their bellowing laughter echoed behind us.

"Hey, wait!" The same one shouted again, but I didn't turn around.

"God I hate that name," I told Bella as we continued marching down the road, trying to keep the mood light. "It's so unoriginal, like really? You can't come up with anything better than the color of my hair? Jessica's going to have a field day with this, we'll get there soon."

I shivered as the cold grew with the darkness. The lamp posts turned on early, casting an eerie orange glow on the damp streets and making the droplets on chainlink fences glisten. The silence surrounding us sent even more chills through me, but I was determined not to be afraid. After all, I'd learned there were much scarier things in the world now, an uncomfortable atmosphere was easy to overcome.

"Um… B - Blaire?" Bella whispered. She tripped over her feet as she slowed down, jerking me forward. She didn't apologize for it like she usually did. Something was wrong.

"What?" I asked, looking up at her, but her attention was over our shoulders. I looked over too and my heart sank.

Two men, two men from the group before, were following us.

 **V**

* * *

Holy gravy, we're about to enter a crazy scene! To be honest, this chapter was a little difficult to write and the reason why it took so long for me to update was because I wasn't sure how I wanted everything to go down. It was a bit of a bear to wrestle with, but I hope you guys like it!

As always, thank you for your reviews! They seriously make my day and keep me motivated.

See you guys soon!


	21. MISUNDERSTANDING

**BEFORE YOU READ.** I just want to address a couple of things.

I'm sorry that my updates are so slow! I'm not sure if you guys don't know or don't remember, but I actually write original works outside of fan-fiction. I mainly do projects like _RAVAGE_ as a way to let off steam and practice my craft in a less stressful environment than the one I post my original work on. If you like this story and you're interested in my original works, I'll be happy to PM folks with a link to a story I currently have online that you can read **FOR FREE**. It's a New Adult fantasy that I think a lot of you will enjoy if you like _Twilight_. The best part is, I update that once a week without fail.

To answer a lot of people's questions who have asked, **I AM NOT ABANDONING THIS STORY**. I can't help but laugh at everyone asking me this or assuming it, but I can see where y'all get that idea. I promise I'm not. I'm just busy! I'm currently working on three original novels and I also do consultation-work on two others. I didn't realize how much everyone was enjoying this story, I honestly thought it was just me lol. To show you guys how much I appreciate you, I'm going to start devoting a bit more time to this story and attempt to create a bi-weekly posting schedule so I can fit it in with my original writing and consultations. How does that sound?

Anyway, I hope you enjoy our latest installment! Thanks for sticking with me!

* * *

 **19\. MISUNDERSTANDING**

I could hardly believe my eyes. Was this seriously happening right now? Sure enough, the two men were advancing on us. They were quiet, the difference between them now and how they were only… had it been fifteen minutes before? Thirty? I had no idea and I didn't think I should care. What I did care about was that these men seemed to be moving with a purpose now, and I didn't want to find out what that purpose was.

I focused on what I could control, which was Bella and I. We both turned down the next corner and started walking a lot faster. Her fingernails dug into my arm as mine did the same to hers. We were stiff, robotic, moving like one unit. I wondered if I needed to call 911, but I wasn't sure if the men were following us. It could all be some huge misunderstanding, right?

We pulled each other down the sidewalk until we reached a right-hand corner. I pulled Bella down it immediately and froze just at its entrance.

The two other men from the group stood in that alleyway. It was closed in with walls and no windows on either side. No one would be able to see us from inside the buildings. Just beyond them, I could see an intersection, people walking, _civilization_. But it seemed so far away. Especially right now, knowing those two other men were going to seal off any chance of escape if we just kept standing here.

It was fine, though. It was okay. Bella and I would make it through this. Vampires were the scariest things in the world, not these men, even if they seemed more like monsters with their crooked smiles in the dim light.

Rage flared through me when I saw those self-assured smirks. I yanked Bella away, across the street, and I couldn't tell if the loud thumping noises I heard were their footsteps closing in on us or the blood roaring through my ears.

"There you are!" One of them shouted, the one who'd called me _Red_.

"Yeah," someone else said, responding to them. "We just took a little detour."

Bella and I wouldn't be able to outrun them, not together, not with how klutzy she was. I almost hated her in that moment, but quickly pushed the emotion away. The hate came from fear and I would _not_ be afraid.

There were scarier things in the world. There were scarier things -

"Stay away from us," Bella said, her voice stern but not at all threatening. I grimaced as felt the men close in around us. I pushed her behind me before spinning around to face them. One of the men, a taller ganglier one, looked me up and down.

"Aren't you the brave one?" He laughed. The others did too.

It was too late to call 911.

I glared. "Better than a coward," I snarled. "It must take a certain breed of _loser_ to gang up on two -"

An engine _roared_.

Two bright beams of light flashed down the road, illuminating the scene, making everyone freeze. A car rushed toward us so fast it almost clipped one of the guys in the process, making him trip onto the sidewalk. Bella yanked me into the road, right in front of the car, to which I almost screeched at her in protest as I tried to pull her back - we almost got hit by a car _once_ , and that'd been one time too many - but miraculously the car skidded to a stop with the doors of its passenger side facing us. Silver doors for a _silver car_.

"Get in," a growl that was so much deeper and so much more terrifying than any would-be thug made me tremble. I grappled Bella's arm to keep me from screaming.

"Blaire, come on!" Bella shouted, pulling me toward the car while I tried to pull her away. She somehow overpowered me, or maybe she tripped, because we both fell in the backseat. The door slammed shut behind us.

We were in _so_ much more danger now.

I clawed at Bella, past her, at the other door, but the tires vibrated and screeched beneath us, sending the car racing back up the road it'd come down. I barely reigned back a scream of absolute terror and settled to crowding Bella as far into the corner of the car as I could before I faced the driver - our fresh wave of hell.

"Put on your seatbelts," Edward Cullen said. His eyes met mine in the rearview mirror, a knowing glint in them that I could only place as a predator recognizing its prey.

Bella's hands fumbled beneath my weight. "Blaire," she said quietly, "come on -"

"We're fine," I whispered. There wasn't enough room in my lungs to say much else.

"Are you okay?" Bella suddenly asked, but before I could answer her, I realized she was talking to _him_. Why was she asking him if he was okay? And how the hell did she sound so calm?

"No," Edward answered. I grabbed Bella's knee, hoping my nails could dig through her jeans and she could understand what I was trying to tell her. She needed to shut up. She needed to stop talking.

The car suddenly stopped. I almost rolled out of my seat and into the center console, but I pulled myself back, determined to keep myself between Bella and Edward Cullen, slowly coming to terms with the fact that I would share the same fate as my uncle.

"Are you all right?" Edward asked. I wanted to burst out in hysterical laughter because, really, that question had to be the sickest joke.

"Yes," Bella said. She gently held my shoulder, trying to push me away, but I was stock still, probably looking like an idiot half-sprawled along the backseat. "We're okay."

Oh no, Bella, we were _far_ from it.

"Distract me," Edward said, the harshness of his voice making me jump.

"I - I'm sorry," Bella said and I wanted to scream at her to _stop talking_ , but it was like my fear made me paralyzed. "What?"

He let out a sharp breath, one that almost sounded like the guttural hiss of a jungle cat. Not human. I wondered how couldn't I see it all before? Why did it take my uncle's death to show me what the Cullens _really_ were? "Just prattle about something unimportant until I calm down," he said as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Hell no. _Hell_ no. No _way_ -

"Um," Bella said anyway. "I think Blaire is contemplating Tyler Crowley's death."

He was the _last_ one on my kill-list.

"Why?"

"He's just… He's telling everyone that he's taking her to prom - either he's insane or he's trying to make up for almost killing us last… well, you remember it, and he thinks prom is somehow the correct way to do this. So maybe, if she endangers his life, then we'd all be even, and he can't keep trying to make amends. Maybe Lauren would back off more, too. We were talking about totaling his Sentra. If he doesn't have a ride, he can't take anyone to prom…"

This was fucking hilarious. I almost wanted to pass out from the insanity - maybe it would wake me up if this was a horrible dream. There was no way in hell Bella was talking about high school drama to a fucking _vampire_ -

"I heard about that," Edward said. He almost sounded calmer, but that could have been my imagination.

"You did?" Bella asked. "We were thinking maybe, if he was paralyzed from the neck down, he can't go to prom either."

Finally, we heard him sigh. And it was a normal sigh. Human-like. I did not relax.

"Better?" Bella asked.

"Not really," he admitted. He leaned back into his seat to look at the ceiling of the car. We only saw the top of his copper head. I wanted to drag Bella to the other side of the backseat, maybe make a break for it. But then I snuck a glance at the locks on the car, which were buried deep into the door. Maybe they could still be opened…?

"What's wrong?" Bella whispered.

 _Literally everything_ , I wanted to reply, then realized she _still_ wasn't talking to me. Why wasn't she talking to me?

"Sometimes I have a problem with my temper, Bella," he said just as quietly. That was all the more reason to get the hell out of here for me. I carefully inched my hand toward the door handle. "It wouldn't be helpful for me to turn around and hunt down those…"

My fingers brushed along the handle and pulled, but it slipped out from my shaking fingers. The handle made a small _thunk_ when it hit the door. Edward's head tilted forward. I froze.

"At least… that's what I'm trying to convince myself," he finished.

"Oh," Bella said. Did that finally mean she was getting the hint? That Edward Cullen wasn't a – a _being_ to be trifled with? We needed to get out of here. I needed to stop being a freaking statue and _do_ something.

"I – I think _our friends_ will be worried about us," I finally said, not even bothering to mask the sharpness of my tone. "We're supposed to meet them."

Bella gasped. "You're right. It's six-thirty!"

I watched Edward twist his key in the ignition of the car to make it start, I remained stock still as he began driving again. I noticed with some surprise that we were going back to town. We… We were going back to town? I didn't know why. Weren't we about to be eaten?

I didn't react as the light of streetlamps lit up the interior of the car, didn't move even as Bella tried to push me off of her, and said absolutely _nothing_ even when Edward parallel-parked the Volvo in front of the little Italian restaurant, La Bella Italia, what we joked was Bella's restaurant, where we were supposed to meet Jessica and Angela. Wait… did we ever say what restaurant we were meeting at? Did we even say we were meeting them at a _restaurant_?

The locks on all of the doors popped up.

"How did you know where –" Bella started, but I launched into action.

I lunged toward the door and opened it, shoving Bella out of the car. She promptly fell on her ass on the sidewalk while I tumbled out after her. I hauled her up to her feet, ignoring her as she squawked at me, pushing her toward the restaurant, jumping when I heard a car door open and close behind us. I whipped around, glaring as Edward Cullen sauntered around the front of his car toward us.

"What the hell are you doing?" I demanded.

"I'm taking you to dinner," he said. He gave me an unnerving smile, one that didn't reach his eyes.

"Like _hell_ ," I snarled, wondering how much of a chance I had of tackling him to the ground and screaming at Bella to make a break for it.

"You'd have a better chance of tipping over my car," he said. I glared at the snarkiness of his response before my eyes suddenly widened. Wait, what –?

"Go stop Jessica and Angela before I have to track them down, too," Edward said. "I don't think I could restrain myself if I ran into your other friends again."

Bella jumped to follow his instructions, running a little way down the sidewalk to stop Jessica and Angela before they could cross the street at the next corner. I whipped around and stalked toward him. This was my only chance to confront the Cullens and I wouldn't waste it.

"I would choose your next words carefully," Edward suddenly warned me, stopping me short. "Whatever you think you know about my family is wrong."

I scoffed at him. "Bullshit –"

"You know my actions tonight contradict your prior evidence," he pressed. "If any of my family killed your uncle, why would I waste my time saving you tonight?"

"You don't know what I'm thinking," I hissed.

"You already know I do," he retorted.

When the _fuck_ could vampires read minds?

"I could tell you when, why, and more," he said. "You want answers. I understand that. Allow me the opportunity to give them to you."

"Why?"

"Because we have a misunderstanding," Edward said. "I want to remedy it. You want to keep your promise, don't you?"

The question cut me deep. My eyes welled with tears I couldn't even try to hide.

"Um… Blaire?"

I spun around, almost crashing into Jessica in the process because she tried reached out for me. She looked worried, glancing between Edward and I, then took a nervous step back as Edward straightened up and smiled. It was a charming smile, lovely, _fake_.

"We… We should go," Jessica uttered, her usual confidence long gone as she succumbed to Edward's stare.

"Yes," I said as I stepped back with her. "We should."

"I think you both should eat something," Edward said, glancing between Bella and I. The smile was gone now, replaced with a gentle concern I knew wasn't gentle at all. He would tear us to shreds. "I could drive you both home, that way you don't have to wait for them."

The perfect setup to commit a murder. He frowned at me.

"Uh, that's not problem… I guess…" Jessica said. I turned and gave her a sharp look, which made her wilt, until her eyes met Bella's.

Bella smiled and shrugged, then she tried to wink. It was the worst attempt at it I'd ever seen, but I couldn't exactly comment on it when I was busy _losing my mind_ over its implications.

" _No_ –" I started off.

"Okay!" Angela said, turning to me. "I mean, that's no big deal, especially if you _and_ Bella are both getting something to eat. We'll see you guys tomorrow!"

She grabbed Jessica's hand and pulled her back down the sidewalk toward their car, my salvation disappearing while I felt like my feet were glued to the sidewalk, shocked at the events unfolding before my eyes. I turned to Bella, but she only had eyes for Edward.

"Honestly, I'm not hungry," she told him, _still_ not talking to me.

"Great, then we should go with them," I said, reaching out for her.

"Humor me," Edward replied, but there was a double-meaning to his words I couldn't ignore. He started walking to the restaurant's front door and pulled it open. Bella walked toward it, but I quickly grabbed her arm.

"Bella _please_ ," I whispered to her, "we should go."

"Maybe you should," she said. There wasn't any meanness behind her words, she genuinely looked concerned for me, and it was what stopped me from snapping at her. "I mean, maybe it would be best. I just…" She looked at Edward holding the door, who was watching us carefully. "There are things I have to know."

I pieced everything together rather fast, at least my mind seemed to move faster than my body. Bella _knew_. She knew what I knew. I didn't know how she figured it all out on her own, without Waylon's case files, but…

But she knew, and I suddenly didn't feel so alone anymore. I wouldn't let her be alone either.

Finally, I nodded and followed her up to the restaurant and through the door Edward held open. I stared at him as I walked past.

 _If you hurt her_ , I challenged him through my foremost thoughts, _I will end you. Got it?_

He rolled his eyes and sighed.

 **V**

* * *

No lie, I was smirking a little toward the end. Something tells me Blaire and Edward aren't going to get along well, what do you think?

Let me know if you want me to send you a PM with the link to my original novel that you can read **FOR FREE** and updates **EVERY WEEK**. Also, I am working up a bi-weekly schedule to update _RAVAGE_. Everybody wins!

I seriously can't thank you all enough for your continuous support with this story. I haven't checked this site often, but when I do, I'm always amazed by the sheer amount of comments and your consistent praise that somehow always flood in when I need to see it most. I hope I continue meeting and exceeding your expectations. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to show you all what I can do! See you soon!


	22. FACT

Super fast, I wanted to thank all of the readers who asked for a link to my original novel in the comments as well as reached out to me in my PMs. It seriously means SO MUCH! I really hope you guys enjoy the story! Last Saturday I ranked 106 out of the top 1,000 stories on the site and I'm positive you guys helped me get there. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

If you want a link to my story, don't be afraid to ask me in the comments or PM me!

Okay, enough boring self-promo. Enjoy the chapter.

Y'all ain't even ready tho.

* * *

 **20\. FACT**

La Bella Italia was a small, cozy restaurant. It was the ideal tourist trap in Port Angeles, dimly lit in gentle pink and red hues. It was so quiet and intimate you could hear a pen drop, even with the soft mumble of other guests dining in the establishment. A female host with bleach-blonde hair and dark roots stood behind a podium at the entrance of the restaurant. She straightened up as soon when we walked in and her gaze skipped over Bella and I to land on the man – well, that was to be determined – behind us.

"Welcome in," she said, smiling enthusiastically, but her grin wasn't meant for Bella and I. Still, I greeted her anyway.

"Do you have a table for three?" Edward asked her.

The hostess glanced at us before nodding and perkily leading us to a table in the throngs of the other restaurant-goers. Bella and I were about to sit, but I paused when Edward leaned in toward the hostess, said something, and discretely handed her a folded bill.

The hostess then led us to a booth further back in the restaurant. I slid in first with Bella beside me. Edward took the space opposite of us. It felt like we were the only ones in the entire restaurant now. "How's this?" The woman asked.

"Perfect," Edward said, flashing a smile at the hostess that probably would have been swoon-worthy to me if I didn't know the truth. Now it just looked predatory.

Of course, the woman faltered because she was blissfully ignorant of how much bigger the world was, and obviously seemed to fall for the illusion. "Um – Your server will be right out," she said before quickly striding back to her post.

"You really shouldn't do that to people," Bella said, her tone brittle. "It's hardly fair."

"Do what?" Edward asked, leaning into his seat, a smaller but more genuine smirk set on his features.

"Dazzle them like that," Bella said. I frowned. Do what now? "She's probably hyperventilating in the kitchen right now.

His smirk slipped a little, now looking a little bemused.

"Oh come on," Bella said. "You have to know the effect you have on people."

"Yeah, the primal terror is pretty easy for your _family_ to instill in people," I said, Jasper Hale's black eyes resurfacing in my subconscious.

Bella frowned at me. "What? No?"

My eyes widened. " _No_?"

Edward's head tilted to the side and he still looked humored. I hoped that was a good sign. "I dazzle people?"

Before I could say anything, Bella turned on him. "You haven't noticed?" She asked. "Do you think everyone gets their way so easily?"

"Do I dazzle you?" Edward asked her.

What the fu –

"Frequently," Bella said. Her cheeks started blooming red.

Why did I feel like I was on the beach with Bella and Jacob again? The sudden answer felt like a punch in the stomach.

I reeled, appalled by the exchange. No, appalled didn't seem like a strong enough word. Bella _knew_ , she knew everything, and she didn't care. She was just like the hostess, fooled by an illusion. The breath flew out of my lungs. "They… They killed Waylon," I croaked.

She whirled on me just as our waitress sidled up to our side of the table.

"Hello," she said cheerily _to Edward_. "My name is Amber and I'll be your server tonight. What can I get you to drink?"

Bella didn't look up at her. She was still staring at me. Edward was too. I glanced at his face and shrunk under his expression. It was flat, emotionless, I wondered how long it would take him to kill all three of us. This wasn't going to end well. It wouldn't end well at all. I needed to minimize the damage. I needed to get rid of the waitress, then I'd push Bella out of the booth, then –

Mind reader. I was dealing with someone who could read my mind. I needed to focus on something else so my plan wouldn't be ruined.

"Coke!" I squeaked, thinking of nothing but the bubbly sweet drink that was also the answer to the waitress's question.

"Three Cokes," Edward said, scrutinizing me.

"I'll be right back with that," the waitress said. My fingernails dug into the vinyl cushion beneath me as she walked away, knowing I'd have to act fast. I could only think about soft drinks with so much enthusiasm for so long.

"How are you feeling?"

Did he really just ask us that? We were about to _die_. Did he think we'd be okay with that? When I looked up at him, his eyes were on Bella. Oh. The question wasn't even for me. What the hell?

"I'm fine," Bella said.

"You don't feel dizzy, sick, cold…?"

What was this – twenty questions? Why was he being so nice? So… attentive?

"Should I?" Bella asked, sounding just as confused as I was.

Then Edward _chuckled_. It wasn't a full-out laugh, but he was definitely amused. I wanted to know what exactly he found amusing.

"I'm actually waiting for you to go into shock," he said. Then he smiled at her.

Wait… Did he actually _like_ her?

The smile disappeared in that same moment and he gave me a sharp look. My stomach flipped.

"I don't think that will happen," Bella said with a sigh. "I've always been very good at repressing unpleasant things."

"It wasn't like we actually got attacked or anything," I said. "Either way, I could've handled it."

The " _without the help of a monster with a crush_ ," I directed at Edward was obvious, mainly because I also thought it as clearly as I could. His mouth drew into a thin, straight line. "Just the same," he said tightly, _still_ not addressing me, "I'll feel better when you have some sugar and food in you."

The waitress sashayed (really, that was the best word for it, no one moved their hips that obviously when they walked normally) to our table with our drinks and a basket of breadsticks.

"Are you ready to order?" She asked as I reached for a breadstick.

"Bella?" Edward asked.

"Um… I'll have the mushroom ravioli."

No one did anything. Or said anything. I nibbled on the breadstick, staring at the menu in front of me, trying to think about the empty carbs I was stuffing in my mouth and a perfect escape route simultaneously. Maybe also plotting how to convince Edward I was actually a lesbian and I had dibs on Bella so he would leave her alone.

"Blaire?"

My eyebrows shot up and I looked at Edward. He didn't look happy that I even _existed_. "Would you like anything?"

"Sorry, I didn't want to crash your _date_ ," I taunted. His jaw tightened. I turned to the waitress, who looked utterly put off. "I'll have the eggplant parmesan, please."

"And you?" The waitress asked, turning back to Edward. She even _sounded_ sad.

"Nothing for me," he replied. Of course not.

His eyes flickered to mine. I wondered how close I was to death. The thought made me all the more manic.

"Let… Let me know if you change your mind," the waitress said. When she walked away, I noticed there was less sway in her step.

"It – This isn't a date –" Bella said.

"Yes it is," I said. "Dinner at a romantic restaurant, you two are having an A-B conversation and getting to know each other, he's paying. Hell, you even went retro and brought me along as a chaperone."

 _Ha_ , I bet Edward was old enough to appreciate _that one_! Get it, because vampires were immortal? I was so beside myself I could have laughed aloud at my own joke.

"Blaire…" Bella said, guiltily.

"You should drink," Edward said. My eyes widened at his choice of words. He grimaced. "The Coke," he explained further, pushing it toward me.

"I'm not thirsty," I said. _Are you?_

His eyes seemed to blaze with indignation against the restaurant's ambient lighting. He sighed sharply and looked down at his place setting on the table, briefly, before he looked up at Bella. "Are you cold?" He asked.

I turned, noticing her shudder. I frowned.

"Don't you have a jacket?" He asked.

Before I could offer a snarky comeback, my phone started vibrating. My shoulders dropped as a new wave of fear rushed through me, but a more manageable one. Were my parents home already? Were they already looking for me? Would they even find me?

"You should answer that," Edward said. I looked up at him, noticing a ghost of a smirk cross his features as he shrugged off his jacket.

I yanked out my phone, steeling myself for the name that would flash across the caller ID, accepting my mother's inevitable screeching that would welcome me as soon as I picked up the call. Would I even have time to tell her I loved her? When I looked at the screen, all of the air in my lungs left me in a loud _whoosh_.

 ** _JASPER HALE_**.

I trembled. My mind raced. Why was he calling me? Why now? Why?

Bella saw the name splayed out across my phone's screen. "Jasper's here too?" She asked.

"He's outside," Edward replied.

Jasper Hale was _outside_.

I balked. Edward still looked too smug for his own good. I wanted to reach across the table and slap that almost-smirk right off his face. He was looking at me as if he won. When he reached across the table and handed Bella his jacket, it was like he was saying _checkmate_.

"Oh," Bella said. "Why wasn't he with you… earlier?"

Because this was a trap. They wanted to finish the job themselves. Had that been their plan all along? Maybe they somehow read mine and Bella's minds and were waiting for the perfect opportunity to kill us.

My phone continued to vibrate.

"He's concerned," Edward said, his tone level and his words slow. Clearly trying to send a message. His eyes were intent on mine, unwavering, molten hot. "That's all. Please answer the phone."

I didn't have another choice. My hands moved on their own. I answered the call and brought it up to my ear. "H – Hello?"

" _I know I don't have time_ ," Jasper's voice was cold and hard. It cut through… through whatever spell Edward put me under. It'd been like a haze. Just me moving and his eyes. I blinked. " _I know you want nothing to do with me. I know what you think I've done – what my family's done – but I swear on everything I am, everything within me, and whatever I could be, that my family nor I had anything to do with your uncle's death. If you meet me, I can tell you everything._ "

The waitress came with the food and left again. I didn't see it, didn't smell it. All I could focus on was the white noise on the other end of the line.

"Why?" My voice was a whisper.

" _Because Edward is too afraid to tell you what you want to know with Bella beside you_ ," Jasper said. " _But you have a right to know the answers to your questions. I have the obligation to give them to you._ "

My hold was so tight around the phone that the plastic _creaked_ under my fingers. The restaurant felt too small and too tight. Bella and Edward's eyes burned me from all angles. My indecision lashed like a whip, every choice and its potential consequence flared like I was physically struck. If I left Bella, I had no idea what Edward would do. If I stayed, I wouldn't get the answers to my questions, and where would that leave my promise to Waylon? How was I supposed to _choose_?

"I followed you to Port Angeles," Edward said quickly, his eyes never leaving Bella's, but I somehow knew the confession was meant for me as well. "I've never tried to keep a specific person alive before, and it's much more troublesome than I would have believed. But that's probably just because it's you. Ordinary people seem to make it through the day without so many catastrophes."

When I looked at Bella, she was smiling like she usually did when she was about to trump someone in a class-debate. "Did you ever think that maybe my number was up the first time, with the van, and that you've been interfering with fate?" She asked.

"That wasn't the first time," Edward answered her. Fear wrapped around my heart and held me to my spot. "Your number was up the first time I met you. You remember?"

"Yes," Bella said. Unlike me, she sounded eerily calm.

Edward blinked. He then licked his lips and leaned forward, a thoughtfulness passing over his features that drew his brows in together and he stared at Bella like she… like she was…

Like he couldn't believe she was sitting in front of him.

He was a _vampire_ , yet he looked at Bella like _she_ was the inexplicable creature.

"And yet here you sit," he said, mystified.

"Yes, here I sit… because of you," Bella said. She stared at Edward like he was everything she had ever known. But that was impossible, they were too different, he was a monster, but she accepted it. She accepted _him_. "Because somehow you knew how to find us today?"

Edward leaned back in his seat, thoroughly engrossed by her. Disgustingly so. He watched her through narrowed eyes, so fucking _analytical_ , before he looked down at her plate and back up at her. "You eat, I'll talk," he said.

He wasn't going to kill her.

I shot up to my feet and clambered over Bella to get out of the booth, barely registering her annoyed squawks because I was trying not to fall on my face once I made it to the other side. I hung up the phone, winding my way out of the restaurant, ignoring the hostess's halfhearted farewell.

I shoved the door open, welcoming the cold air blasting my face. I breathed in, for once relieved that Washington clung to winter as fiercely as it did. Everything felt too close, too hot, too _much_ –

Jasper Hale stood in front of me at the bottom of the restaurant steps, his eyes bright and yellow like his name, but all I could think of were bottomless black shark-like eyes from the parking lot on the day I was almost crushed by Tyler's van. He sighed like he knew what I was thinking too – or maybe he did?

"We have a lot to talk about," he said.

 **V**

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MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!


	23. ANSWERS

For those of you asking, yes, I did post chapter 22 yesterday. However, I had to delete it because the entire document's HTML codes were presented to readers instead of actual prose. I deleted the chapter and decided to try reposting at a later date. I still have the same issue, so here I am, copying this entire chapter from my WordDoc on this text-box. If this isn't dedication, I don't know what is.

I was on vacation last week. Coincidentally, the location was Scottsdale, AZ which happens to be fifteen minutes away from Phoenix, AZ. After visiting for a week, I totally understand why Bella didn't want to leave, but I have no clue how she didn't have a tan. I'm currently the shade of a cooked lobster!

Finally, for a weird piece of trivia, I expected this chapter to be a lot easier to write than it actually was! This experience was _AGONIZING_ because Blaire is so conflicted! This chapter is going to be the beginning of her transformation as a character and I couldn't be more excited. I hope you enjoy this chapter more than I struggled over writing it!

* * *

 **21\. ANSWERS**

I stood on the top step of La Bella Italia, staring at Jasper Hale. His pale skin was near-luminescent under the gauzy lighting of the restaurant, which made him look like a modern day marble statue dressed in a leather motorcycle jacket and tailored Levi's jeans.

It made it harder to comprehend the enormity of the situation I found myself in. Learning that vampires were probably real in theory was completely different than actually recognizing one in real life, realizing you'd been tutored by one for the past two weeks because they probably felt bad for almost murdering you in the high school parking lot -

I narrowed my eyes. "You tried to _eat_ me."

He shifted from one foot to the other. "I... probably should have seen that coming."

"Probably."

"It wasn't intentional," he said.

"Which part?" I asked.

"All of it." He didn't miss a beat that time.

People walked past him on the sidewalk as Port Angeles's nightlife bloomed. A group of older women dressed in form-fitting pencil skirts and flouncy silk blouses walked past him and tried to catch his eye, but he never stopped looking at me.

 _Were you lying when you said you didn't kill my uncle?_ I asked him in my thoughts, because apparently vampires could read minds. _Are you going to kill me for what I now know too?_

His expression was perfectly neutral. What did that mean?

 _Are you going to kill me or not?_ I demanded. _I deserve to know!_

Nothing.

I glared, even though I felt my limbs begin to tremble.

He frowned. "What?"

"C - Can you not read my mind?" I asked. "I just... I just want to know... I want to know what happens next. Please don't hurt Bella, or my family. I'm the only one who knows -"

"What are you talking about?" Jasper demanded.

I gripped the railing beside me so hard my knuckles strained. I forced myself to be brave. There were consequences to knowing what I knew, just like there had been for Waylon. I had to own up to them. In my heart of hearts, I'd known there was no way I could survive an entire group (mob, pack, what did you even call a group of vampires? _Ha_ , a _murder_ , probably) of monsters on my own. I just didn't think it would catch up to me so fast. I couldn't believe I let him lure me outside!

I held back the tears pricking at my eyes and forced myself to talk past the lump in my throat. I glanced around, finding the sidewalk momentarily clear before I finally walked down the stairs. I stopped on the last one, putting Jasper and I inches apart and almost eye-level.

"I'm the only one who knows," I said. I sucked in a shaky breath. "If you - If you're trying to finish the job, it stops here. I didn't involve anyone else. It's just me."

I ground my teeth, trying to come to terms with the fact that I just put my life in someone else's hands. A _vampire's_ hands. I looked at the ground as my vision blurred, blinking rapidly, refusing to reach up and scrub the tears away. I wouldn't cry.

"You still think I'm going to kill you," Jasper said.

What other option was there? I didn't want to find out.

Cold fingertips brushed across my cheekbone, sending shivers down my spine. I flinched and looked up. A rogue tear tracked down my face as Jasper Hale regarded me. It was his signature calculating look, but... there seemed to be so much more going on now. Like he was sifting through more emotions, more ideas. Whatever was going on inside his head made his eyes burn. I stood perfectly still as the urge to fight seeped out of me, replaced with a fuzzy relief that made my heart warm. Relief? Now was the wrong time to feel relieved! Not right now when I was royally screwed -

Jasper's fingers caught my tear before it could fall off my face and wiped it away. His touch was feathery soft, it tickled my skin.

"You would do it too, wouldn't you?" he asked as he lowered his hand. "Sacrifice yourself for them."

"That's what a family _does_ ," I whispered, breathless. I was unable to catch up with my racing heart.

The corner of his mouth quirked up for a second, then fell back into a grim straight line. "You won't have to make a decision like that today," he finally said. "My family had nothing to do with your uncle's death. In fact, we didn't even know the extent of what he knew until after his death and Edward heard your thoughts. He's the only one who can do that, by the way."

There was so much information packed into what he said, so much to understand. I stared at him blankly as his final words finally registered. "Wait what?"

"Read minds," Jasper clarified. "Earlier, you asked if I could read your mind and the answer is no. Edward is the only member of my family who can do that."

"Oh."

Jasper glanced around the area we occupied on the sidewalk. "Why don't we continue this conversation somewhere a little more private?"

My heart fluttered a little at his words, whether it was from terror or... or something else entirely, I wasn't sure. I didn't _feel_ afraid anymore, which made no sense, because rationally I knew I should have been.

Then my phone vibrated. I jumped, so startled that even Jasper took a small step back as I flailed to grab my phone. "Hello?" I answered without even looking at the caller ID. Big mistake.

" _Where are you?_ " my mom demanded. I couldn't help but sigh a little in relief. At least she was okay.

"Um... hi. I went dress shopping with Jessica, Angela, and Bella -"

" _After I said no?_ " Her voice was getting pitchy. I cringed. " _Where. Are. You?_ "

"P - Port Angeles," I said. I knew I was going to get caught, but I guessed talking to vampires put facing my mom's wrath on the back burner.

" _Come home. Right now_ ," she commanded. " _I can't believe this. Blaire, what were you thinking?_ "

"I... I just..." I stammered as my heart swelled uncomfortably in my chest. "I just -"

" _I don't care. I needed you at the house and you promised you would stay. You broke your word._ "

So many words piled up against my mental filter. She had no _idea_ what I was dealing with. She didn't know what I knew. I could tell her, but she'd probably think I was crazy. Or worse, I would put her in danger.

"I'm sorry," I said, my voice thick.

" _Come home_ ," she said. Then she hung up.

I slowly tucked the phone in my pocket.

"Come on," Jasper said abruptly. I looked up at him, startled by how gentle his words sounded. His expression seemed sincere. "I'll drive you home."

One half of me wanted to stay behind at La Bella Italia where it was safe, with Bella, while the other half wanted to follow Jasper Hale to the ends of the earth if it meant at least some of my questions could get answered. The indecision was splitting me in two.

Jasper already started walking away. He made it halfway down the block before turning around. He watched me expectantly.

"Do you know what actually happened to my uncle?" I asked. "If you didn't kill him, do you know what - or _who_ did?"

He nodded.

I followed him.

We walked two blocks without saying anything. My heart grew heavier with every step. "Edward isn't going to do anything, right?" I asked him. "Because I'm pretty sure leaving my best friend alone with a vampire breaks several rules in girl code."

"Bella is fine," Jasper said. "If anything, she's the safest she'll ever be if she sticks by his side. Edward's become hell-bent on trying to keep your friend alive, what with the whole car accident and all. Ever since then, Edward has accepted... He's accepted the fact that he finds it almost impossible to stay away from your friend and he's running out of reasons to keep his distance."

"What are you saying, exactly?" I asked. "That your brother has the hots for my best friend? And all of his douchiness has been to try and push her away? Because he actually _likes_ her?"

"His emotions aren't mere infatuation," Jasper started off. I wondered if I was imagining the small flare of indignation I heard fueling his words. "You already know how dangerous this world the two of you are entering is. Edward thinks Bella doesn't understand that."

"Can't he just read Bella's mind and find out for himself?"

Jasper laughed mirthlessly. "It would be the perfect solution," he agreed, "but Bella seems to be the only person - vampire or human - whose mind he can't read."

I scoffed. "Honestly, that doesn't surprise me, and I just found out _vampires_ are real. Bella's always been an outlier."

"It seems that you both are," he replied. "No one has questioned that my family could be anything beyond what we appear, yet in the span of one month, we've come to find out that of all people, the police chief's daughter and the niece of the police deputy have uncovered our secrets."

"I wouldn't have known if it wasn't for Waylon," I said. "He found out way before I did. I knew something was wrong with him. These past few weeks... he acted different."

My eyes watered as I thought of Jasper's words from our first tutoring session. They flared to life in my mind like a giant neon sign. _You really don't pry, do you?_

"Why didn't I question things sooner?" I whispered. My throat tightened. "Why didn't I just _ask_?"

"You couldn't have known -"

"Don't," I said, shaking my head. "I did know. I knew something was different about you and your family the day Tyler's van almost killed Bella and me. The only problem was she didn't let it go, while I was fine with pretending it never even happened. I let her think she was crazy so I wouldn't have to deal with... with... That's fucked up. I could have solved everything so much sooner, I could have been more prepared, Waylon could still be alive - But instead I let myself be afraid."

It was too quiet for a moment, like the world had gone still. The sky was dark blue and gusts of wind cut through my thin rain jacket, making me shiver. As another breeze pushed my hair into my face for the third time, I twisted it into a top-knot. I felt it hang haphazardly off the side of my head, but I didn't care enough to fix it.

"It was perfectly normal for you to feel afraid," Jasper said, quietly. "You thought it would be safer to admit it didn't happen than face what could be."

"Well now I need to face it," I said, bundling my coat closer around me. "I don't have another choice."

We stopped at the parking spot holding Emmett's jacked up Jeep. He opened the passenger door for me. "Whatever you need to ask, I'll answer."

I nodded and climbed into the car. Jasper closed the door and walked to the other side. On the way, he shrugged his jacket off of his shoulders, exposing the soft gray Henley shirt he wore underneath. When he stepped into the driver's side of the Jeep, he handed me the jacket. "I'm driving with the windows down," he explained as he shut his door.

"I want to know what happened to my uncle," I said as he started the car. The engine gave a throaty growl. I pushed my arms through the sleeves of his jacket before putting on my seatbelt. The leather was cold against my skin.

"There are more vampires in this world besides my family and I," he began coolly. He pulled out of the parking space and started driving out of town. "The only difference is most of them live differently than we do. We choose to feed off of animals and live among humans so that we can lead lives ruled by logic and reason rather than instinct. Almost all other vampires hunt humans, most for nourishment since it's the only thing that truly satisfies us."

"You sound like you know that from..." I swallowed. "Personal experience."

"I do."

Night fell, making the sky almost black. Darkness swallowed us up as Jasper took one of the rural highways out of town. The only light came from the Jeep's headlights spilling across the road and the lights of the center console, casting the interior in a faint, dim green glow. Cold air whipped through the car, but the chill wasn't what gave me goosebumps.

"A coven of three vampires have been hunting up and down the Northwestern coast," Jasper went on. "We've had vampires pass through our territory before to hunt, but they always move on after a week or so. This coven hunted closer to us than they should have."

The recent missing persons' posters that Waylon collected began to make more sense now. My uncle was right: vampires were at fault for their disappearances. He became a casualty in their path. It was ironic.

My head ached and my chest burned. I wanted to scream, I wanted to hit something, I wanted justice, I wanted to make things right, I wanted -

"How can I kill them?" I asked before I could stop myself. I didn't regret it, though. If anything, asking the question out loud made resolve steel my bones.

Jasper looked at me, his eyes wide. He almost looked horrified. "You - You can't," he finally said before turning back to the road.

"Bullshit," I snarled. "What do I need? Stakes? Silver? _Garlic_?"

"Myths," he said.

"You're not indestructible."

"We're close to it," he said, turning the car a little harder than necessary to make a left turn. "We can be killed, but you can't do it. The only way to kill a vampire is to tear them apart, limb from limb, and burn their remains. You can't even take your gym bag away from me."

"So that's it?" I demanded. "Are you saying there's nothing I can do?"

"Nothing you can do, no," he said. Before I could say anything, he spoke again. "But I'm going to help you."

I scoffed. "You're really going to kill one of your own for _me_? The _prey_?"

I thought it would get some sort of rise out of him, but he was silent. He... He wasn't kidding.

My jaw dropped. "Why?"

He said nothing. I watched his hands tighten on the steering wheel. "Jasper," I pressed. "I need to know. Why do you want to help me?"

When I thought he would never answer, he finally spoke. "To prove to myself that I can. I don't want anything else."

What did that even mean? I shook my head, curling my fingers into fists in the sleeves of his jacket.

Something had been brewing in Forks ever since I showed up. Something I was only just beginning to understand. I'd sensed something different about my second home the day I arrived, from that weird brush of cold air I felt on my neck while I was tying my shoes -

My thoughts spiraled out of control. The weird vibes I got whenever I practiced my drills outside by myself, how similar they'd been to when I used to be terrified of Jasper after the car accident. My old soccer ball, deflated with ragged claw marks torn into it and the two fist-shaped dents in Tyler's totaled van. The random cut I got on my face. My house on the morning of the beach trip, the morning of Waylon's death -

It was all connected. It had to be.

 **V**

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So... what are we thinking? Was the wait worth it?

Before I leave, I wanted to give a shout-out to the guest reviewer who called me an asshole for the last chapter's cliffhanger. I choked on my cereal from laughing so hard. Whoever you are, you're now featured on my Instagram. Congrats!

As always, thank you guys so much for your support. It really means a lot!


	24. CLARITY

Hello! Thanks for being so patient with this chapter, I know it was very much anticipated! I really appreciate you guys' reads, votes, and comments, but I feel like I need to throw out a little **PSA** for those who are new to the game.

If you're going to comment to whine and/or badger me about updating this story, at least come off of anonymous so I can PM you an essay on why this story isn't even on my list of priorities. Writing fanfiction isn't my job. I do plan on finishing this story, and I'll do it when I have the time. If you're looking for weekly updates on a story, PM me for a link to the original content I post online! In the meantime, relax. I got you.

I made a commitment to finish this work, and I will, mainly because I'm no quitter and I do love writing this story when I have time to do so, and I love that you guys are enjoying it as much as I am! Thank you! The kind reviews left on here mean the world to me!

Okay, that's the end of that rant. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! I think it's easily one of my favorites!

* * *

 **22\. CLARITY**

The silence was tense. Neither of us said anything for what I was sure couldn't have been more than five minutes, but it felt like five years. I still didn't know why he would help me, but then I remembered what I'd told Bella about gift horses the day Tyler's van almost crushed us. Yes, Jasper Hale was a gift horse – one whose mouth I _definitely_ wouldn't look in. I shuddered at the thought of fangs protruding from his straight white teeth at any moment.

Cold air ripped through the car, yanking at my hair and pulling it out of its loose bun. After a while, I realized I couldn't even feel my face. I pulled Jasper's coat closer around me, but it did little to keep me warm.

"Sorry," Jasper suddenly said. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him reach out and start fiddling with the buttons on the car's dash. Hot air rushed out of the vents, acting as a small buffer against the chill. "It's… easier this way."

"Easier?" I echoed.

His hands shifted on the steering wheel. "All the members in my coven, with the exception of Alice and myself, were reborn and trained for centuries to abstain from human blood. Alice always knew she was going to be one of them, so she spent her life practicing until she met them. Compared to them, I'm still… inexperienced."

I was awash with discomfort by this whole conversation, but everything he said seemed to open up more questions that I needed to know the answers to. I had to keep pressing. "Is it hard?" I asked. "To abstain, I mean."

"I think the answer depends on who you ask. Carlisle considers this lifestyle to have no drawbacks or difficulties. He acts as though it's given him some sort of enlightenment on our kind's existence."

Again, I faced more questions that would lead to answers I knew I would fear.

"But…" My voice barely carried over the wind and blasting fans of the heaters. "If I asked you?"

I finally looked at Jasper. He was perfectly still, the only change was in his brows, which had knitted together in concern. He looked… conflicted. "It's the hardest thing I've ever done," he said.

"Is it hard right now?" I murmured, my throat closing in an attempt to pull the words back down. But it was too late. He glanced at me.

"Yes."

My fingers tightened in the sleeves of his jacket. Not killing people was the hardest thing he'd ever done. This creature was a grenade let loose in society, let loose in a _school_ , I was trapped in a car with him –

"But that doesn't mean it's impossible," he said quickly. "Right now, I'm in control."

I rubbed my hands over my face. My chest tightened, constricting my heart. This was all too much. My stomach kept doing summersaults. "I'm going to be sick," I muttered into my palms.

The car slowed down dramatically, making the wind cease. The sudden quiet of the air was jarring and it made my ears ring. The passenger door opened beside me and I turned to see Jasper standing in its place with his arms braced against either side of the doorway. His eyes ensnared mine instantly.

"You'll be all right," he said. "I know this is a lot of information and I know you're still afraid of me. You should be."

"I know," I said quietly.

He didn't look offended by my statement. He nodded and carried on. "I told you that I would answer all of your questions. None of them will come with good answers. I won't lie to you to spare your sensibilities, especially when I know that isn't what you want. Your search for retribution won't come easily, nor will its result fulfill your short lifespan, and you better believe it'll be fraught with its horrors. No story involving a vampire has ever ended pleasantly."

My eyes narrowed. "I'm not looking for a pleasant ending," I said. "I'm looking for whatever end stops them from killing anyone else."

"No you aren't," Jasper spat back. I stiffened, forcing myself not to flinch. "Don't confuse your warped sense of restitution for justice."

There were a ton of words I probably should have noted for my SATs, but I was too frustrated to care. "Are you going to help me or not?" I demanded. "Because it seems like you're changing your mind."

"Far from it. I'm trying to change yours."

"That's not happening."

"How I wish it would," he said. He shut the car door on my face before he was suddenly in the driver's seat again, starting the car and merging on the empty road. He had a glare fixed on the highway stretching ahead of us. I folded my arms back over my chest to block the cold.

The rest of the drive passed too quickly. My thoughts were a tangle the entire time, obsessing over the strange things that had been happening to me since I got to Forks. I needed to tell Jasper, if he was on my side and willing to help me achieve my goal. I couldn't let these vampires keep going anymore, like they won. Maybe I was doing this for myself, I wondered how Waylon would feel if he could see me now. Within the span of a few days, I was making deals with vampires.

Jasper pulled into my neighborhood. My dread grew as we got closer and closer to Waylon's house.

"I can't change my mind," I said as he pulled to a stop a house away from Waylon's. "Not when it's my fault."

Jasper scoffed. "Now how did you come to that conclusion?"

"Things have been… happening. Ever since I came here," I said. "I feel like I've been _watched_ this whole time. Last Saturday morning, there was something in my house. It was in my _room_. I think my uncle saw it and tried to shoot it. I think he saw a vampire. The first day I came here, I lost my soccer ball. A couple of days later, before school, I was practicing drills in the driveway and I found it laying on my mailbox with these – these claw marks in it. Do you remember the scratch I had on my face on my first week at school?"

Jasper was rigid in his seat. He nodded slowly.

"I didn't do that," I said. "S – Something scratched me that morning while I was in the middle of the street."

"Do you still have the soccer ball?" Jasper asked. His voice was thick. It made my heart drop into my stomach.

"It's in my room," I said. "I can bring it to school on Monday –"

"No. I want to see it tonight."

"Um, that's going to be kind of hard since I'm pretty sure my mom's about to ground me for eternity," I admitted. "I snuck out to go with Bella, Angela, and Jessica tonight."

"I'll come back," Jasper said. "Give me thirty minutes."

"What –"

"Thirty. Minutes." His voice was hard. It left no room for debate.

"But how –"

"I'll text you," he said. "You should go in. Your mother is getting anxious."

I glared at him. "So you _can_ read minds."

"No, I can read and manipulate emotions, there's a difference." I gawked at him. "Hurry up, Blaire."

I hopped out of the car and started walking to the house as fast as I could. As soon as I pushed through the front door, my mom was on top of me. "I hope you had fun tonight," her voice burned like acid, "because it's going to be a _long_ time before you go out again."

I cringed. "I'm sorry –"

"Don't," she said. My eyes swept across the living room, finding my dad stock still on the couch, zoned in on the TV in order to avoid the confrontation. Good. If he got involved, it would only make things worse. "Do you have any idea how worried we were?"

Not as worried as I'd been since Saturday.

"I needed to get out of the house," I muttered.

"Then you should have come with us to the funeral home!"

I huffed a breath, my eyes stinging with tears. Did she really not get it? Or did she just not care? I couldn't _deal_ with Waylon's death. I didn't want to. Staying trapped in this house or going to a funeral home only made everything real. It made me feel helpless. Hunting down the vampires that killed him was the only thing that would make things right. Even if my mom would never understand that, she had to understand how much _breathing_ hurt without him.

My mom sighed as well. "I can't – I can't deal with this, Blaire. Not right now. Not with everything going on –"

"Neither can I!" I shouted. The tears in my eyes overflowed. "I _can't_! I'm doing my best, Mom, can't you see I'm trying?"

Her mouth shut and her eyes widened and started glistening. I shook my head and scrubbed my eyes.

"Just… Leave me alone," I said before I took off for my room. I slammed the door behind me. I didn't turn on the lights, letting the darkness envelop me. It kept the rest of the world at bay. It hid the tears streaming down my cheeks. I sucked in a few shuttering breaths to get myself together before straightening up from the door. I had too much to do to keep crying.

I grabbed my phone and texted Bella, making sure she was all right. Had Edward told her that vampires were real yet? Would she be up for a late-night discussion picking apart literally every single detail about the Cullens? Probably, because she was blindly obsessed with Edward Cullen. She wouldn't be after she heard my side of the story, I was sure.

My phone vibrated with another text message that simply read: _Fifteen minutes_. It was from Jasper.

Fifteen minutes. I wished my heart wouldn't beat as fast as it did over two simple words. I could hear my parents still wandering around downstairs, talking, their voices muffled with the floor between myself and them. How was Jasper expecting to pull this off? It wasn't like he could just walk inside my house, or even sneak in. My room was on the second floor!

My room… which was also a mess.

Clothes were strewn about everywhere, rejects from picking outfits this week. Worksheets, notebooks, and text books were strewn over my desk. It looked like a bomb had gone off.

I rushed around the room, throwing clothes in the floor of my closet and shoving all of my books and papers in my backpack, which I also threw in my closet. I found the remains of my soccer ball beneath the mess. When I picked it up and turned it over in my hands, my stomach lurched uncomfortably. No bear made these marks, just like no bear or mountain lion killed that security guard at Grisham Mill. Or killed Uncle Waylon. I set it in the middle of the now-empty desk, flipping on my desk lamp to cast it under a soft yellow glow. It was the only light I decided I'd dare to turn on, since I wanted my parents to think I was asleep. By the time I forced my crumpled sheets to smooth across my bed, my phone vibrated with another text: _Open your window._

My body trembled as pure adrenaline surged through my veins. I walked toward the window and gently pushed the curtains aside. I shoved it open, letting in cold air. I held back a shiver as I peered out.

Jasper stood in the backyard, staring up at me. He waved his hand, motioning for me to get out of the way. I stepped back –

I barely choked back a cry of surprise as Jasper lunged through my open window. He didn't make a sound as his boots landed on the thick-pile rug centered on the hardwood floor. He straightened up, looking tall and imposing inside my too-small, too-dark room. He looked like a wild animal trapped in a cage.

"Where is it?" he asked.

It took me a second too long to react because I was too busy staring. I floundered into action. "Um, there," I said, flapping my arm toward the desk. Jasper was in front of it, noiselessly, before I even finished the answer. His eyes reflected brightly in the dim light from the desk lamp, zeroing in on the deflated soccer ball. He picked it up and brought it to his nose and inhaled.

My eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. Did he – Did he just – Did he sniff my ball?

Before I could even worry about sexual innuendoes, Jasper's eyes went wide. A wave of rage pulsed through me then, so violent I was ready to punch the first thing in sight. My nerves crackled with fire –

"Sorry."

In the same second, the room cooled, leaving goosebumps on my skin. My eyes were heavy, I was so tired, and I wanted to crawl under my blankets and sleep. "Wh… What?"

"Sorry," Jasper said again. "You should sit down."

I dropped heavily on the edge of my bed. The room spun and fizzled out of focus. My head was light. I fell back against my mattress and let out a long breath. "What was that?" I asked.

"My ability," he replied. "Sometimes I forget it even exists until it affects someone else. Are you all right?"

"Yeah," I said, waving him off. The fog around my head began to evaporate, leaving me exhausted from the emotional rollercoaster I just experienced. If anything, rollercoaster wasn't even an accurate description. It was more like an emotional leap from an airplane and falling without a parachute. I pressed my hand against my forehead. "Wow."

"I'll get you some water," he said.

"No, you can't," I said. I struggled to pull myself up, only to face an empty room. I tried to push myself out of bed, but when the room started spinning again, I leaned back into my headboard. I was going to be in so much trouble –

A glass of chilled water appeared in front of my face, held in Jasper's pale hand. "They didn't see you?" I asked in amazement, accepting the water. I drank from it greedily.

"No," he replied. "Vampires are much faster than humans can comprehend. My family and I have to pretend to be slow to fit in with everyone."

"Oh," I said, so-eloquently. I was too busy watching him drift around my room, taking in the posters on my wall, the trophies I displayed on my bookcase. I only put out the ones I was the proudest of. I wondered if he thought they were silly. I fiddled with my half-empty glass self-consciously. "So, um, why did that whole… emotional overload-thing even happen in the first place?"

He made his way back to my desk, his fingers lightly tracing the deflated ball. "This coven's encroachment on our territory was no accident," he said. "This is different. These vampires have been circling this area not because they were hunting, but because they were honing in on something. On someone."

The darkness of the room swaddled me, but it felt like it was trying to smother me now. A cold breeze fluttered in through the open window. More than anything, I wanted it shut with Jasper outside of it.

"Me?" I uttered.

"I didn't consider it," he said. I started to tremble, and I knew it wasn't entirely from the cold seeping into my room. I quickly put the glass on my bedside table so I wouldn't drop. "It didn't make sense. It still doesn't. You were in danger once, but that had been taken care of –"

"What?" I choked out. "What do you –?"

"You know that Edward can read minds and I can manipulate emotions," Jasper said. "Alice can see the future. The visions are subjective, as anyone can change their future with a single choice. On the day Bella fainted in biology and you didn't have a ride after practice, Alice saw that you considered walking home. If you chose to do that…"

He didn't have to finish. I knew what he was trying to say. If I chose to walk home that day, I wouldn't have made it. I would have died. There were other vampires in my town that wanted _me_ dead. They could have killed me easily.

The strange occurrences I'd dealt with suddenly took on a whole new meaning. The cold breezes, the paranoia, the soccer ball and its claw marks, the cut on my _face_ , the _fear_ –

The fear grew into terror and it clawed its way through my chest, shredding my lungs apart. It was hard to breathe. "They – They've been _hunting_ me," I whispered.

"Yes," Jasper said. He almost sounded pained.

My head pounded for a new reason now, my throat had almost swelled shut as my eyes clouded with tears. "My…" it hurt to talk, "Uncle Waylon died because of _me_?"

He didn't say anything. He didn't need to. Jasper stood back against the wall between my desk and my window, watching me fall apart. "It's my fault," I whispered. I couldn't hold my tears back anymore. "It's all my fault."

I sobbed into my hands, the fear and sadness and regret and frustration and anger all rolling into a violent storm that threatened to wreck everything in its path. Me. It threatened to wreck _me_. Nothing mattered anymore. Waylon died and it was all my fault because I was too afraid, too stupid, too –

A heaviness settled over me, making me numb to the world. Apathy. "You need to sleep," Jasper said. "You've had a trying day. I know you have more questions, but they can wait until tomorrow. Edward and I will pick you up for school. With Bella. She texted you back, by the way. She made it home. She's all right."

I was more exhausted than I'd ever been in my entire life. I curled into my pillows as my comforter stretched over me. I tried to fight it, but it was fruitless. I was like a salmon trying to swim upstream, fighting a current too strong for me to handle. "But… vampires… hunting…"

"I'll stay the night. Go to sleep, Blaire."

I did, whether I wanted to or not.

 **V**

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I love pretty much all of these quotes in this chapter. Did anything stand out to you? And ugh, don't get me started on the emotions! Poor Blaire!


	25. FALTERING

Hey, guys! Thanks for waiting. A lot of crazy, awesome things have been going on since I last updated! My original work has been featured on Wattpad and is on a list with fourteen other books that are put in front of 65 MILLION users! I'm so humbled by the experience and the book's reception online so far! It's been incredibly inspiring!

It also doesn't help that I've been watching a lot of teenage dramas on Netflix, including a movie called "The Kissing Booth." Have you guys heard of it? It's actually based on a popular Wattpad-novel! I'm not wild about the story's characters, but it did put me in the mood to write this, so I guess it had some positives, right?

Hope you guys enjoy this next installment!

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 **23\. FALTERING**

My alarm clock blared. The noise was like a lance to my skull.

I groaned and rolled over onto my stomach. My arm swung out, feeling feebly along my nightstand for the offending device so I could shut it off. I sighed in relief as soon as silence filled the room again. Memories of last night swept up to meet me –

Jasper Hale.

My eyes opened, widening to see through the darkness of the room.

I sat up, my fingers curling tightly into my comforter, as I stared. "J – Jasper?" I whispered.

Nothing.

I glanced at the clock, squinting at the neon bright lights that read six-thirty, then back around the room again. My eyes adjusted to the dim light, exposing the room for what it was: empty.

I sighed –

My phone started vibrating, the grating buzzing noise along my nightstand making me jump. I grabbed it, relieved at the name displayed on the caller ID, and answered it.

"Bella," I said, my voice rough from sleep.

" _Hey, Bee_ ," Bella said, her voice hushed. My brow furrowed. " _Um… did I wake you up?_ "

"No," I replied, running a hand through my hair to push it out of my face. "Are you okay? You're okay, right? Bells, I'm so sorry about last night, I should have stayed –"

" _No, no_ ," Bella said. " _It's okay. I'm fine. Are you okay?_ "

No. Not even a little bit. I rubbed my eyes with my free fingers as pressure built in my skull. Vampires were real and they were hunting me. Waylon's death was my fault. Nothing about my life right now was okay.

"Fine," I said, clearing my throat. "I'm fine. Jasper took me home."

" _I know_ ," she said. " _Edward told me._ "

Edward. Right. The other issue. Wait. Bella, my best friend, who knew… she…

"Do you know?" I asked.

" _Know what?_ " Bella echoed, but I could hear the words she was trying not to say build up behind the catch in her breath.

"Do you…" my fingers picked at a loose thread in my blankets. I glanced around the room again, my gaze lingering on the dark doorway of my closet. I was never afraid of monsters when I was little, but now I'd never been more terrified. "Do you know _what they are_?"

Bella's breath was shaky on the other end of the line. " _Yes._ "

I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting between sheer panic and relief. I wasn't alone, but she _knew_. She was in just as much danger as me.

" _When did you find out?_ " she asked.

"The day Waylon died," I said, fighting past the lump in my throat. "He thought some disappearances in Port Angeles – the animal attack at Grisham Mill – he thought it was the Cullens."

" _But it isn't,_ " Bella said quickly. " _It's not._ "

"No," I said. "They didn't. Another one did."

I decided I wouldn't tell her Waylon died because of me. That I was the one the other vampire – or vampires – was looking for. Or maybe I should –

"When did you find out?" I asked, repeating her question.

" _The same night,_ " she said. " _Jacob Black told me stories at the beach, but I knew something was different before… Before everything._ "

Before everything. Before the van, before the beach, on my first day of school. Bella asked if I saw something different in the Cullens. Of course I noticed, but me, like everyone else in this stupid town, didn't have the guts to ask like her. Why didn't _I_ ask? Maybe if I did, Waylon would still be alive.

I couldn't even be mad at her. She tried to tell me, but I didn't listen. "Oh," I said.

" _We – We can talk more on the way to school_ ," Bella said. " _I can pick you up in ten, if you want. Unless you need more time to get ready –_ "

"No, I'm fine," I said. "I'll see you in a bit."

I hung up and set my phone on the nightstand before reaching for my bedside lamp. I blinked at the low light filling the room and stood up, then grimaced when I realized I was still wearing the same clothes I had on last night. I stripped them off, then started picking through my haphazard collection of clothes spread all over my room. I pulled out a pair of clean distressed jeans and a Forks High Spartans T-shirt. I wouldn't have time to shower, so I slipped the clothes on and decided to shower after school.

I snuck out of my room and into the bathroom, quickly brushing my teeth and running a brush through the knots and gnarls of my hair. I threw it back in a high ponytail before spritzing myself with my mom's vanilla-scented body spray. Even as I wiped my face with a makeup-remover to freshen my skin, it still looked dead and dull under the harsh bathroom light. Well, maybe not dead, I knew what that looked like…

Someone knocked on the bathroom door. "Blaire?" my mom's voice was soft and muffled.

I reached out and unlocked the door before pulling it open. My mom stood on the other side, rumpled in her sweatpants and ratty T-shirt. Her hair was just as messy as mine had been this morning. When she wasn't dressed in her impressive power-suits or professor-clothes, we looked alike.

"What are you doing up so early?" she asked.

"Bella called," I said. "She needed to pick me up early because she has a meeting with her English teacher. Something about… extra credit work, or whatever."

I was getting better at lying. It was scary.

"Oh…" she said, brows furrowing.

"Yeah," I said, shifting past her. "I just… I have to get my shoes."

"We need to talk about last night," she said, making me tense. I turned back around to face her in the hallway. "I'm still not happy about you leaving last night, but I get where you're coming from, honey, I really do. With the divorce, and now this… I'm worried about how you're handling things."

My mind, for the first time this week, was an empty slate. "Handling things…?"

"We can talk later," she said. Oddly, that didn't make me relax. "Get ready for school. How does spaghetti for dinner sound?"

Probably better than the dread currently sitting in my stomach. "Um. Fine."

She smiled and nodded. "Good. Go get ready."

She disappeared in her room. I pushed into mine, grabbed my shoes and backpack, and started walking downstairs.

I hopped on one foot as I put on my socks and slipped on my white Vans, keeping my eyes down as I moved past Waylon's door. The smell of coffee filled the kitchen, and I frowned when I saw my dad moving around the tiny space, already dressed in freshly-pressed slacks and a polo. When our eyes met, he blanched.

"M – Morning, kiddo," he said. He gestured to the percolating machine in the back corner of the kitchen. "Coffee? We went to the store last night on our way back. Got that creamer you like."

"Sure." I said, slowly making my way toward the room while my dad pulled down a travel thermos from one of the cupboards. He set it down on the counter before he wheeled back around and opened the fridge, pulling out a bottle of my favorite caramel-flavored creamer. In a flourish, I watched him untwist the cap and peel of the protective foil, then twist the cap back on. My stomach turned. He put the bottle to the side and reached for the coffee pot, glancing uneasily at me in the process.

My dad used to be a bartender. He told me that was how he paid his way through college. He was really good, working at some of the best bars in Seattle. He said that was how he got my mom to date him. He still used his tricks whenever he could because it would make my mom and I laugh. But that was before… before everything.

My dad poured coffee into the thermos, lifting it high into the air to exaggerate the pour. It felt like a punch to the gut. He set it aside and grabbed the creamer, twirling the bottle in his hands and shaking it like he was making a martini. Then he twirled the bottle and popped its cap before making another exaggerated pour in the cup.

By the time he set the thermos in front of me, twisting its lid in place, I felt like I was standing in the wake of the apocalypse. In the wreckage. Broken.

"Why'd you do it?" I asked as the first tears fell.

My dad pulled me into him, wrapping his arms securely around my shoulders. "I'm so sorry, Bee," he whispered into my hair.

Sorry didn't even come close to covering it – it didn't come close to solving anything. He seemed to know it too, with how tightly he held me against him. I thought the embrace would give me comfort, just like it did when I scraped my knees or when I got my driver's license. Instead it felt foreign. This man was a stranger now, he ruined my life. How could my mom just… be fine with him here?

"Why?" I asked again. "This isn't fair."

My dad didn't say anything. He just pulled me closer. I felt his nose crush into the top of my head. His chest heaved with a labored breath. No. He didn't have the right to be sad. This was all his fault.

 _Knock, knock, knock._

It must've been Bella. It had to be, but it was weird for her to knock on the door. Did I not hear her honk the truck's horn? She usually did that first if I was running late, then knock on the door.

"I have to go," I said as I pulled away from my dad and grabbed the thermos off the counter, scrubbing the tears off my face and out of my eyes.

"Blaire, wait, please –"

I walked to the door, not even looking back. I grabbed the handle and twisted it open –

Only to find Jasper Hale looming in the doorway. He was dressed softer than last night – his leather jacket replaced with a soft-looking gray one made of sweater-material. His eyes, still a bright golden color, scanned me over before they cut further into the house, to my dad. "Everything all right?" he asked, voice thick with his drawl.

"What are you doing here?" I asked instead.

He looked back down at me. "Edward and myself wanted to offer you and Bella a ride to school."

"Then where's Bella?" my dad asked sharply. My hand tightened on the doorknob as anger simmered under my skin.

"In the car," Jasper said. "I thought I would spare her from the cold and come to the door myself. She's quite attached to the Volvo's vents at present."

Of course she would be. The truck, as awesome as it was, was a literal ice box in the mornings. It took forever for it to even reach room temperature. I pulled the strap of my backpack further up my shoulder and decided I wouldn't question anything else. Jasper was offering a way out of this house and I would take it.

"My name is Jasper Hale," Jasper went on, to my horror. "I go to school with Blaire. We have honor's history together."

"Brian Holcomb," my dad said. "I'm Blaire's father."

"Okay," I said, stepping past Jasper and out the door. In the same move, the weight of my backpack was plucked off my back and settled in Jasper's hand. I glared at him. He shrugged, as if helpless. "Thanks," the word came out more like a growl.

"Of course," his retort was infuriatingly polite.

"We're going to school," I said without turning around. "Bye."

The sky lightened considerably since I woke up. It was now a dull gray, and fog drifted low across the neighborhood, chilling me to the bone. I realized too late I forgot a jacket. I clutched my thermos as I walked as fast as I could through the front yard, as if I could draw out the cup's heat and let it spread through my body. Today was going to royally suck, I could tell.

Ahead of us, stationed in front of the house, was the Cullens' silver Volvo. Its trunk popped open as we neared it. Jasper's long arm reached around me and opened the back door for me. I was immediately greeted by a hot stream of air, and Bella's face craning around the front seat. "Uh, hey, Bee," she said, her face tinged red. The trunk behind us shut with a _thunk_.

"Hey, Bee," I returned while sliding into the back seat, right behind the back of Edward's copper head. Just as I sat down, the door shut and the one on the other side opened not even a second later, with Jasper sliding in close beside me. My breath caught at him being so close, especially when he seemed to know how uncomfortable it made me. When his eyes met mine, he flashed me a too-smug smirk that made me back into the door. "I can walk," I warned him.

Edward scoffed. "Don't be absurd," he said as he shifted the car in drive.

The only thing _absurd_ here was his obsession with that word.

Edward's hands flexed against the steering wheel, letting me know full well that he heard me.

And that was… strangely that as we drove through Forks to get to the high school. I sat as far away from Jasper as I could, but the feeling seemed to be mutual as he leaned against his door. I sipped my coffee and looked out the window, just to do something. I jumped when they all suddenly opened a crack, making cold air spill into the car. I finally risked a glance at Jasper, who pointedly didn't look at me. The simple act reminded me of how dangerous even simply getting in a car with him was.

"What?" Edward said, suddenly breaking the silence. "No twenty questions today?"

I glanced at Bella, but her eyes were on him. "Do my questions bother you?" she asked.

"Not as much as your reactions do," he replied easily. I couldn't tell if he was trying to be sarcastic or not. Despite the hot air coursing out of the vents, the air streaming in from the outside made its way to the backseat first, forcing me to shiver.

Bella grimaced. "Do I react badly?"

"Don't you have a jacket?" Jasper asked quietly.

"I left it at home," I answered.

"No. That's the problem," Edward said, both he and Bella oblivious to our conversation. "You take everything so coolly – it's unnatural. It makes me wonder what you're really thinking."

"I always tell you what I'm thinking," Bella said.

I arched a brow.

"You edit," Edward replied.

"Not very much."

"Enough to drive me insane."

"You don't want to hear it," she murmured.

I choked, my eyes watering as scalding hot coffee caught in my throat. I coughed the drink down while Bella's face turned scarlet.

"Not like _that_!" Bella exclaimed.

"Are you all right?" Jasper asked. Why was he so annoyingly attentive?

I waved him off and took another swig of my coffee. "Fine," I grumbled. I wasn't fine.

Edward's eyes briefly met mine in his rearview window. I glowered back. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, something fuzzy and gray pushed against my side. I looked down, eyes widening at a gray jacket settled next to me. I looked up at Jasper, now only wearing a white shirt with sleeves that clung to his biceps –

"Where's the rest of your family?" Bella asked.

"I don't need this," I told Jasper.

"Humor me," he said.

"They took Rosalie's car," Edward replied as we finally, finally pulled into the school parking lot. He pulled in next to a bright red sports car – a BMW, I realized, after noticing the car's insignia as we drove closer – I'd never seen in this parking lot before. Cars like that belonged in Seattle, not in quiet towns like Forks. "Ostentatious, isn't it?"

" _That's_ Rosalie's car?" I asked, gaping.

"If she has that, why does she ride with you?" Bella asked.

"Like I said, it's ostentatious," Edward explained as he put the car in park. "We try to blend in."

Bella laughed. It was a weird sound considering the circumstances. You know, carpooling with vampires as they talked about how they hid among humans in plain sight. "You don't succeed," she said before letting herself out of the car. I didn't like the way Edward watched her for a moment before he got out as well. Which left Jasper and I alone in the backseat. I scrambled for my door.

"I thought you were trying to kill vampires," Jasper said as I fumbled for the door handle. "You can't be in the same space as one for five seconds?"

"Ha, good one," I muttered. Suddenly, the door opened in front of me. I wasn't sure if I finally remembered how to work doors or not, but I hauled out anyway, only to almost smack into Jasper's white-clad chest. I reeled backward, positive I was going to fall back into the backseat, but my back hit the closed door of the Volvo. Jasper rested an arm on the side of the car, his thumb only inches away from my shoulder, as he leaned in.

"Have you changed your mind?" he asked. "Do you now understand the full extent of what you're trying to do?"

His arm braced me in on one side, but left the other completely free. If I wanted to, I could turn and walk away. I knew he wouldn't stop me. And that was the point.

I met his eyes. "I knew what I was getting into the second I walked out of that restaurant," I said. "I'm not changing my mind."

I hated the way he looked at me. It put him in the very center of my world and made everything else blur out of focus until it wasn't even there at all. All that mattered was him, and how badly I wanted to prove him wrong. Did he really think it would be that easy for me to change my mind? I relaxed against the car more as I tried to gauge him, tried to figure out how little this stupid monster thought of me. I would change his mind. I'd make him regret even doubting me for a second.

The corner of his mouth lifted by a fraction. "I like your stubbornness," he admitted, his voice a low murmur that sent waves of pride through me. Damn right, he did.

"Um… guys?"

I looked up, meeting Bella's concerned gaze. I risked a glance at Edward, who only had eyes for Jasper, and he looked _pissed_.

"C – Class is starting soon," Bella explained, her face reddening.

A cold breeze cut past us, making me shiver. Jasper looked down, effectively breaking the hold he had on me. "Take it," he said, pushing his stupid gray sweater toward me.

I grabbed it without a word, shoving my arms through the too-long sleeves while he walked past me to the Volvo's trunk. He pulled out our backpacks and handed mine over while he slung his over his shoulder. "A little hypocritical, aren't we, brother?" he asked Edward slyly.

Hypocritical? What did that –

Edward rolled his eyes, but started walking to the school with Bella on his heels. I frowned after her. We always walked to first period together…

"Are you sure about the sweater?" I asked Jasper. "I'll be fine, really –"

"So will I," Jasper said. "Lunch?"

"What about it?" I said without thinking. I was rewarded with a smirk that made me feel like a total moron.

"We could have it together," he said, shrugging. "Edward's going to ask Bella. I could answer more of your questions –"

"No."

His good-natured expression flattened. He arched a brow.

"No," I said. "I think it's better to act like nothing weird is happening. We should keep this out of school, especially since everyone's so nosy here. It'll just be easier. Act like nothing… unusual is happening."

"I see…" he said. He looked amused. "Fair enough, Holcomb. I'll see you in fifth period."

My heart fluttered when he said my last name with that weird, competitive edge in his tone, but I stomped it down. I didn't have time for my heart to flutter at stupid things. I had vampires to kill.

"See you in fifth," I said, walking quickly toward the pod holding my English class. The sooner I got there, the better.

Miraculously, Bella beat me to Mister Mason's class. She was already in her seat, looking grateful to see me around Mike Newton's head. He perked up when he followed Bella's gaze, but his smile quickly disappeared. "Hey, Blaire," he said. "New jacket?"

I wanted to smack my head into the nearest, hardest surface.

 **V**

* * *

This was probably super filler-ie and I apologize, but everything felt so incredibly necessary that I didn't want to leave anything out! Originally, I was just going to have Blaire's dad be a douche-canoe throughout this story, but now I kind of want some kind of redemption for him.

And JASPER. Holy moly. I wasn't ready.

See you soon!


	26. DENIAL

Guess who has a full set of fingers and has been reading Jasper fanfiction?! This girl! *insert jazz hands*

Also, I got some breathing room with my current original project so I felt less guilty working on this.

Enjoy~

* * *

 **24\. DENIAL**

I had Jasper's jacket stuffed into my backpack to avoid any further questions, suffering through the cold passageways in between buildings. Apparently it was all for nothing, though, because Jessica's claws easily sunk into me as soon as I walked into Spanish.

"What the hell?" she demanded eagerly as soon as I reached her and Bella's desks. "First Edward showed up, then _Jasper_?"

"They – They were out together," Bella said quickly, giving me a long and overly meaningful look. "Jasper just got held up at a store, but he met us for dinner too."

"That's amazing," Jessica looked like she was about to start drooling. "Tell me everything!"

"There's not much to tell," I said.

"Bullshit," she said. "Everyone saw you guys this morning. You were practically undressing each other with your _eyes_. And now you have his jacket!"

The bell to signal the beginning of class rang.

"Well, on that note," I said, unease turning my stomach as I slipped to my desk. Undressing each other with our _eyes_? God, that sounded horrific. Well, I mean, as unlikely comrades went, I guessed I had a pretty hot one, but come on. If only she knew it was the furthest thing from the truth. Jasper Hale probably found me as attractive as a woodland rabbit.

The rest of class passed horrendously slow as I continued to muddle through the foreign language. I wondered if Señora Groff was just going to give me a C- for effort at this point. But it was impossible to focus, especially today, especially when every word reminded me of Jasper and made me imagine how it would sound coming from his mouth – smooth, deep, like velvet –

I was out of my seat as soon as the bell rang, hastily throwing my backpack over my shoulder to push my way out of class. "Blaire!" Jessica called, but I ditched her and Bella both. I needed go somewhere to clear my head. I knew that wouldn't happen if I sat in a cafeteria full of vampires. Bella may be okay with that for now, but I'd talk sense into her later. I could only handle one battle at a time.

I didn't stop walking until I pushed my way into the girls' locker room to change into the shorts, long-sleeved tee, and sneakers I left in my locker on Monday before I snuck into the gym's supply closet, which they always left unlocked. I found a soccer ball in one of the many bags sitting in the middle of the floor. Having it in my hands solidified my decision.

I walked out of the gym's back door and made my way out to the lush, dark green soccer field on the far side of the school's athletic fields. Cold air nipped at my bare legs, but the weather grounded me. I hugged the ball between my arm and my side, the smooth surface rubbing against my ribs as I walked.

I found calm in the center of the soccer field when I dropped the ball on the ground. I reached out and toed the ball, extending my leg, then I hopped over the ball, completing a quick rotating step-on.

This was right. I knew it when I pulled the ball under my feet and jogged along the field. It was right. Soccer was the only thing that made sense, especially right now. I could trust my feet to carry me and move the way I wanted them. I had control here, which was important, since I didn't have it anywhere else.

I shifted and twisted around the ball up and down the field. I didn't feel the cold anymore. My chest tightened the faster I breathed, but I pushed my legs harder. I wanted to practice longer so I didn't feel anything. I wanted the world and everything in it to vanish. I threw myself into drills, shoving the ball along the field and stepping around it, developing my techniques, my thoughts wandering to practices and if Marissa Alverez talked Coach into letting me play the game. It got postponed due to the rain last week. _Could_ I even play the game –

Trees rustled.

I stopped short, almost tripping over my feet in the process. I stumbled, my eyes widening as I turned to the forest next to the soccer field.

A limb on one of the evergreen tress shook.

The air left my lungs in one massive gust. I suddenly felt too cold. What was that?

"Blaire!"

I jumped, spinning over the ball to look back at the school as Alice Cullen skipped down the hill from the football and track field, her eyes bright with a wide smile to match. She was dressed in a dark plaid skirt, a strappy black top covered with a distressed denim jacket, black opaque tights, and patent leather combat boots. Her hair was messy and uneven, fitting with the grunge aesthetic she was going for. A small black backpack that wasn't able to hold any of her school supplies hung off one of her shoulders and bounced as she approached.

"Hey, Alice," I said as I glanced back at the forest. Nothing looked out of place now, but I knew something had been there before. Or maybe there hadn't and I was finally going crazier than Bella. "What's up?"

"Nothing," she said, sidling up beside me on the field. Her eyes weren't as bright of a gold as Jasper's, and I didn't like how they slid knowingly toward the forest before meeting mine. "I thought you'd like some company while you practiced."

"Is that really true?" I asked. She frowned. "Before you called my name, I heard something –"

"That was a bird," she said. My shoulders dropped in relief. She nodded to the ball. "I won't distract you. I just wanted to talk without worrying about Jasper interfering."

I slowly started working on no-touch steps again. "Why would he interfere?"

"He wants you to keep thinking all vampires are dangerous –"

"They're not?" I asked.

"Yes and no," she answered. "Our family isn't like others. You're safe with us."

"No offense, but I don't really believe that."

"I know," she said. She didn't seem to be upset at all. "You don't have a reason to, but I wanted to tell you anyway. I think we can still be good friends."

I didn't know how she figured that. I didn't want anything to do with them. I only tolerated Jasper because he was willing to help me kill whatever vampires were hunting me now.

"I was wondering if you still wanted to go shopping with me," she went on. "We could go to Seattle this weekend –"

"I can't." I said. "My uncle's funeral is on Saturday."

Her expression crumpled with guilt. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to –"

The bell rang from the school. The noise echoed across the fields. My moment of peace was over, but it was probably over the moment Alice Cullen called my name. Maybe it was over the first day I came to Forks.

I sighed, shoving my foot underneath the soccer ball to kick it up in my hands. "Look, I don't want to be a jerk," I said as I began walking back to the school, "but I don't really want anything to do with vampires, so that includes your family."

"Blaire –"

"I'm sorry," I said. I didn't turn around as I hiked up the hill. "I just – I can't."

 **V**

I slumped into my chair in history, freshly changed back into my original clothes. I pulled out my text book and stared at the white board, numb to everything, already too exhausted to handle whatever lesson Mister Apell offered today.

Then Jasper breezed into the room.

It was kind of funny how all of the other students in Forks High seemed to be used to the Cullens' weird presence in their lives. People here were like frogs in a pot of water that had started out cool but was only getting hotter. Maybe I would have been the same way. But now that I knew the truth, unequivocally, that Jasper Hale and his family were monsters, I shrunk in my seat. Especially when I saw the annoyance written all over his face.

My heart jumped into a much faster rhythm as he moved too quickly to sit behind me. Before I could do anything, he leaned across his desk and his breath hit my ear, making me stiffen. "I know you may have a chip on your shoulder from dealing with our kind," he said, his voice rough, "but you don't have to take it out on the people trying to keep you safe."

"Oh, so you think you're _people_ now," I said, twisting around in my chair.

Jasper's brows knitted together as that calculating expression took over his sculpted features. He paused for a beat before speaking again. "I'm sorry about what happened to your uncle," he said. The words constricted around my heart. "If I'd known that they were hunting him, I would have done something, I assure you. But it'd been a split-second decision, one Alice couldn't foresee because she was watching over our own guests –"

" _Guests_?" I hissed. "What the hell does that mean?"

"We aren't savages," Jasper snapped back. "We have company."

"Sorry I never considered it," I said. "You know, because of the whole chip going on with my shoulder and all. Why was she watching over them in the first place –"

The answer hit me like a freight train, so sudden that Jasper's eyes actually widened. For the first time since I met him, he actually looked afraid.

"They – They eat people, don't they?" I whispered. "I thought you didn't eat people!"

"Not all of us adhere to our lifestyle," Jasper said quickly. "They know our rules –"

"Did they kill Waylon?"

He glared at me. "Tread carefully."

"I won't," I said. "Not when you're inviting supernatural beings that _kill people_ for dinner parties –"

"Stop," he growled. The word really did sound like a growl.

"Like hell –"

"Miss Holcomb, Mister Hale," Mister Apell said, making me jump in my seat. I whirled around to face the older man. "Perhaps you two would like to continue this discussion on your way to detention?"

"No thanks, I've heard enough," I said. I stood up and yanked my backpack out from under my desk. "Don't worry, I'll spare everyone the drama and see myself out."

Everyone was stunned into silence as I stormed out of the class. Only as the door swung shut behind me did I hear whispers.

I needed to get out of this damn school, and I wasn't about to wait until the end of classes to do it. And I wouldn't spend the trip home sitting in the back of a _vampire's_ car to debate more about the their moral ambiguity. I felt betrayed, more or less, by the beings Jasper seemed to associate with. Even though I didn't have the right, I was disappointed. He said it was hard enough for him to abstain from human blood, why was he inviting people – _monsters_ , not people – who openly consumed it to hang out? What did vampires even do for fun? Kill people, probably.

But I wouldn't say anything, no. It would be like a bug trying to argue with a person hell-bent on killing it. Jasper was a vampire, a murderer, a hunter, and in this scenario, I was nothing more than a bug to him. A weird little bug he took pity on.

After dumping all of my textbooks and binders in my locker, I snuck back into the girls' locker room to change again. I slipped back into my gym clothes and sneakers before sticking my original clothes in my backpack, realizing with slumping shoulders that I still had Jasper's stupid sweater. I'd give it to Bella to give to him. Or burn it. I hadn't decided yet.

Once I tied my shoes, I left the gym building and started running. No one stopped me as I ran out of the school parking lot and down the sidewalks leading back to Waylon's house. My backpack was light, since it only held my clothes, and pulled close to my back. I barely felt its weight as I crossed empty crosswalks. There were hardly any cars on the streets and even less as I got closer to the neighborhood.

It was a short run – less than five miles – but my lungs started burning in that familiar way that helped me forget my worries, at least for the moment. All that mattered was the way my muscles moved so easily and how quickly the sidewalk moved under my feet. My body always carried me where I needed to go. For the moment, I was invincible.

It only lasted for a moment.

Then a freezing blast of air blew behind me, so violent it ruffled my ponytail. My sneakers slapped the pavement hard as I slowed down to a stop.

Slowly, I turned around.

The street behind me was vast and empty. There wasn't a soul around.

My breathing picked up. Anxiety wormed its way into the pit of my stomach.

Another gust of air hit my back, abnormally cold compared to the rest of the air around me. Panic gripped me as I spun around again.

Nothing. Was I going crazy?

A natural breeze fluttered past me, igniting a stinging sensation along my cheek. I reached up to brush my fingers along my skin, and when I pulled them down, they were coated in red.

It was a greeting.

Arctic-cold air collided with my shoulder, along with a rock solid _force_ that pushed me off balance and made me fall hard on the asphalt. I scrambled up to my feet. It was here. It was here. It was here. It was –

Another hit slammed into my shoulder, pushing me back down. My arm stung. I looked down at it, horrified at the sight of blood welling up from a long scratch in between the pieces of the torn cloth of my shirt sleeve.

In the distance, I swore I heard laughter.

I pulled myself back up and sprinted for my uncle's house. I yanked my backpack off of my shoulders as I ran, unzipping it, reaching for my phone. As soon as I had it in my hand, I felt another breeze. I swung my backpack around wildly, not even caring about the clothes falling out of the bag. I left them in the street.

I dialed the third-most recent name in my phone's call log as I rounded a block. I kept running as the dial display popped up on my screen. I made it one block before the force slammed into my back, knocking the wind out of me, making me fall face-first into the ground. My palms and knees scraped against the street, sending white hot pain across my skin. My phone clattered across the concrete, my heart jumping into my throat when I saw the call pick up.

" _Help_!" I wheezed out a scream, reaching out for the phone. " _Help me_ –"

A blur flitted across my eyes. In the next instant, my phone was broken and lifeless in the street. My hand curled into a shaking fist. My eyes watered with sudden, desperate tears as I hauled myself back up to my feet and started running again. I even left my backpack behind.

I ran to my uncle's house, trying desperately not to cry so I could focus. My heart plummeted to my feet when I made it to the house and saw the driveway empty. Neither of my parents were home.

And I left my house keys in my backpack.

But there was a spare key under the welcome mat!

I let out a hoarse cry as I stumbled up the porch steps, crashing my body against the door. I slumped against it, yanking up the gristly mat to grab the house key. I jammed it into the doorknob and twisted before I fell into the house. I slammed the door shut and latched it with shaking fingers. As if locked doors would hold them off.

I scrambled through the house, straight up to my room. I practically kicked the door in so I could reach my bed and pull out the gun hiding underneath it.

My breathing was ragged, my chest tight with pressure, that I barely managed to rack the shotgun. I fell back on my ass and backed up against the corner of my bed and the wall so I could face both the window and the door. I switched the safety off the gun just as my tears streamed freely down my face, their saltiness stinging the cuts. My fingers trembled.

Everything was too quiet.

I tried to force myself to calm down – I wasn't going to get a clear shot if I was a shaking, teary-eyed, snot-covered mess, but I couldn't get myself to relax. It was so hot and the room was so small, but it was safe. I was safe. I was safe. I wasn't safe! They were hunting me! I was going to die!

I didn't know how long I sat there in the deathly quiet of the house, straining to listen for even the slightest noise. My fingers trembled on the gun, but I didn't dare let go. It was amazing to think I'd once been so afraid of holding this thing when Waylon tried to teach me how to use it, and now I was here, clinging to it like a lifeline.

 _Knock, knock, knock._

Oh, so they were _baiting_ me now?! I propped myself up on my knees and swung the barrel of the gun at my window with a feral growl, my finger hovering on the trigger. I'd show them just who they were dealing with.

"Blaire, wait!" Jasper's face was on the other side of the glass, his eyes wide. At first, I couldn't believe he was there. Did my call actually go through? My call _actually_ went through! I didn't lower the gun.

"Where are they?" I shouted at him. "Are they out there?"

"It's just me," he answered solemnly.

I slumped back on the floor in relief, switching the safety back on the gun before I let it drop in my lap. The window slid open and Jasper slunk in the room in a thick blur, definitely not moving as fast as what was hunting me before, not stopping until his face was inches away from mine.

"My God," he murmured.

"I – I – I –" I covered my face with my hands as I struggled to breathe. The room was so _tight_. "I – I ran – ran – _ran_ –"

"Here," Jasper said quietly, dropping to his knees. He lifted one of his hands toward me. "Don't move."

I shuddered as his cold hand cupped my cheek. The temperature of his skin was a reprieve from the persistent heat suffocating me from every direction. Refreshing calm cut through the terror. "Focus on me," Jasper said. My eyes met his, and he locked me in one of his stares that made it impossible for me to look away. "Breathe in."

I sucked in a shuttering breath, letting it fill my lungs until they expanded with the effort. It made my chest hurt.

"Breathe out."

It escaped me in stuttering whooshes of air, which also made my chest burn. Without thinking, I reached up and held Jasper's arm, clinging to him as overwhelming surges of calm pushed into me. His brows knitted together. "Breathe in," he instructed. I did what he asked, my grip tightening against him as pain stabbed at my lungs. "Now out." I let go, trying to force the tension out with it.

When I breathed in again, my lungs were more welcoming to the air. My muscles weren't as taut. I still clung to Jasper's arm for dear life, didn't look away even as his expression fell. He looked so sad. Or was it pity? "What?" I whispered.

"You're in so much pain," he murmured. "I can feel it. Breathe out, Blaire."

I breathed out and in again. The room wasn't as hot anymore, I could feel a soft breeze from the open window drift through the room. I started getting cold, my body filled with a persistent shiver I couldn't get rid of.

"What happened?" Jasper asked.

My fingers dug into his arm as terror gripped me at the mere memory. "I – I ran home," I whispered. "It – They – I don't know – know how many – were there. They cut me. Pushed me. Broke my phone. I…"

The calm seeped into my bones, forcing my muscles to relax. My eyes watered with new tears. Jasper's thumb swept across my cheek, making the cut sting. He didn't stop looking at me.

"They'll never get the chance to do that again," he said. "I swear it to you."

 **V**

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So the scene where Blaire is running to her house? Yeah, I've been waiting to write that scene since the creepy soccer ball chapter.

Thank you for your reads and reviews! They mean so much to me! I'm glad you all are loving this story as much as I love writing it!


	27. CAVING IN

New chapter, whoop whoop! Thanks for waiting on this one! Things have been pretty stressful but I'm working on managing them! Hope you enjoy!

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 **25\. CAVING IN**

Jasper left to find my backpack while I took a shower. He left his phone with me and told me to call Emmett if anything happened while he was gone. I left it on the sink while I showered, next to the gun I propped up against the wall.

I scrubbed my skin with cherry-almond soap. My cuts stung and the raw skin on my knees and palms burned, but I kept washing them, as if I could rub them away. Of course, it didn't work. When I got out of the shower, I examined the cuts on my face and my arm. They were nothing more than pink streaks along my skin with raised edges. They were only meant to bleed. To let me know they were there, _watching_ me.

I put on leggings and a long-sleeved shirt to cover my cut arm and skinned knees. I dabbed concealer on my face. My whole body kept shaking. It hadn't stopped since I ran into my uncle's house. I didn't know if it ever would. My reflection looked listless, empty and hollowed out.

I picked up the gun and the phone before shuffling out of the bathroom. I walked downstairs and settled at the kitchen table with Jasper's phone sitting in front of me and the gun leaned against the table beside me. I stared at the woodgrain, too exhausted to do anything else.

Beside me, the front door opened, and Jasper walked inside. I turned, staring at my backpack in his hands.

"I'm afraid your phone was damaged beyond repair," he said, suddenly appearing at the table. I didn't react to the speed. "They didn't touch anything else."

I nodded, shifting my gaze back to the table's surface.

"I couldn't catch a good scent," Jasper went on. "They hide their tracks well, but it'll only be a matter of time before they slip up."

A matter of time… How long would that be, exactly?

"Thank you," I said, pushing myself up from my seat. "I'll put it away."

My head went light and the tips of my fingers buzzed. I tipped to the side, landing hard against the table. The gun clattered to the floor.

"I can do that," Jasper said. "You should sit."

As soon as I sunk back down in my chair, Jasper was gone. I stared at the table, following the grains of wood spanning across its surface with my eyes. I was numb. Jasper reappeared not even a minute later, stock-still next to the table. We said nothing.

Then my stomach growled.

I fumbled to grab at it, attempt to stifle the noise, my face burning.

"Do you need to eat?" he asked.

It was such a weirdly phrased question. A human would have simply asked if I was hungry, not if I _needed_ to eat. It was a small reminder that I was beyond my norm. Would things ever be the same again? "Yes," I answered, trying to sit up again –

"I…" Jasper's voice carried from the kitchen. I looked up and sunk back in my chair, my brows knitting together at the sight of him standing in the middle of the old stained appliances and worn cabinets. "I can do it."

I frowned. "You can?"

"Yes," he said, despite looking completely lost in his surroundings. "Do you have cereal?"

I folded my arms on top of the table and leaned into them. "Yeah," I replied. "Pantry."

I watched him scan the kitchen before opening the pantry and pulling out a box of Fruit Loops. My chest tightened uncomfortably. That wasn't my cereal. In the next second, a box of Special K was out and the Fruit Loops disappeared. Did he read my emotions and correct himself? Were reading feelings second nature for him? Jasper didn't say anything else as he searched the cabinets for a bowl, the drawers for a spoon, and the fridge for milk.

He set the bowl in front of me seconds later, the milk sloshing up the side of the bowl from his speed. The spoon vacillated on its sides next to the bowl. I reached for the moving utensil, frowning into the bowl filled with too much milk and not enough cereal. I strained out pieces of cereal as best I could, my spoon clattering against the glass of the plate. It was the only sound in a room thick with silence.

Jasper sat across the table from me, but I barely noticed him. I felt myself fading within the silence of the house, slipping from reality. I didn't taste the cereal – I could have been eating cardboard and I wouldn't have noticed a difference. I was numb. Floating. No longer tethered to anything. Was this what it was like to go insane?

"They're playing me, aren't they?" I asked. "All this psychological warfare bullshit – it means something, right?"

"Yes," Jasper said. "Vampires don't hunt like this."

"How do they hunt, then?"

Jasper's eyes met mine and widened. "You… _want_ to know?"

I shrugged. "I think I should," I said. "So I can understand."

"How tactical," he said. It didn't sound like a compliment.

I waited for him to continue. I frowned when he didn't. "Well?" I asked.

"You'll be frightened," he said.

I narrowed my eyes. "I already am frightened."

"Not nearly enough." His returning expression was just as challenging. "While we were human once, vampires are a completely different breed. We're faster, stronger, impossible to kill. In the transformation, we trade our compassion and empathy for sharper intelligence and instincts. The price is the blood. It drives us. We mark our time by our thirst."

I nodded. "I'm failing to see the horror element to all this."

"When we _hunt_ , it's to satisfy the thirst," he continued, giving me a look that let me know he didn't appreciate the sarcastic jab. "My coven considers a vampire's attraction to human blood a weakness. A depravity to our existence that we can minimize by hunting animals to satiate our appetite."

"Does it work?" I asked.

"You adjust, and you learn to drink enough," he answered. "Three elk every week are the equivalent to one human life every two weeks for me. Sometimes I need more. I'm considered the… weakest link, compared to everyone else's track records."

"Do you think drinking people's blood is a weakness? Like the rest of them?"

His eyes met mine. "Do you really want that answer?"

My skin crawled. I was pierced with doubt. _Did_ I want the answer? "I… I think I should know," I said, hesitantly.

"I think drinking human blood is natural for my kind," he said, answering without pause. "Carlisle may have found a loophole of our existence, but I don't understand how he thinks it's a long-term solution. We are built to kill _you_."

I tried not to be mad. I tried not to be afraid. I clenched my teeth together and forced myself to ask the next question, even if I dreaded the answer. "Why don't you just give it up then? What's stopping you from killing me right now?"

"Alice. I met her before the Cullens. She was the one who introduced me to this life, and I thought it made sense for me. When I killed humans, I always felt the fear in their final moments. That darkness consumed me. It hollowed me out. But I still miss it. The satisfaction was… beyond words."

I needed to remain neutral, like the words he just spoke weren't the most terrifying things I'd ever heard. "I think we're missing the point," I said. "How would you hunt a human? It's different from animals, right?"

"Quite," he said. "They are two completely different challenges."

"How would you hunt me, then?" I asked. "What are they doing differently?"

"To start, they haven't killed you yet," he said. His eyes didn't leave mine, amber irises boiling hot as they ensnared me completely. "It would have been so easy. They've had so many opportunities. Like when you first lost your ball in the woods, or when they placed it on your mailbox. Maybe they're practices in self-control, the scratches they've given you are for taste, yet for them to not tip over the edge…"

The air crackled with electricity in the wake of his silence. My heart pounded as I hung onto that quiet like it was a ledge. I'd been consumed by his words, honeyed by his drawl, and by the subtle rise and fall of his chest that was constricted by the thin fabric of his T-shirt. He regarded me coolly. The corner of his mouth quirking upward was the only indication of an emotion. "It takes everything in me just to sit near you," he murmured.

I was consumed by a nearly unbearable urge to close the distance between us. The table suddenly felt too long. Jasper felt too far away. I _wanted_ to lunge across the table for him. What I wanted to do once I reached the other side, though, I wasn't sure.

"Do you want to kill me?" I whispered, not even bothering to hide that he'd stolen the very air from my lungs.

He sighed. "Yes."

The spoon slipped out of my hand and clattered into my bowl, flicking up milk droplets everywhere. I shot up out of my seat, adrenaline spilling into my veins as I grappled for the gun –

He snorted. "Like that would stop me," he said.

"Doesn't mean I won't try," I said as I pulled it flush against my leg. I didn't pull it up to hold it, though.

"I know," he said. "You're a fighter. I wonder if that'll be enough."

"Enough for what?" I asked.

"To live through this," he said.

The air was dead between us. I was at a loss for words. What was someone supposed to say to something like that? I blinked slowly while my mind whirred with possibilities. Did Jasper really think I was incapable of taking care of myself? Or was I just grossly underestimating how strong vampires actually were?

"Can you show me?" I asked. "C – Could you teach me how?"

"No." He stood up, moving deliberately slow as he stepped to the front door.

"Why not?" I demanded. "Do you just want me to be dependent on you? Don't you want me to be able to defend myself?"

"The only way you would ever be able to do that would be by becoming a vampire," Jasper said. "And I'm sure that's not something you want."

My stomach turned at the mere thought of it.

He smirked, and it was a cold expression on him. "Keep the phone. If you need to reach me, call Alice."

"I can't keep your phone," I said.

"Since yours is broken, and you're being hunted by vampires, keeping it would be the most logical choice," he reasoned, his voice airy. "Your parents will be home soon. I don't think they would appreciate seeing me."

"I guess not," I murmured, sinking into my chair.

"We'll pick you up for school tomorrow," he said. "Have a good evening."

He was gone in the same instant, moving too fast for my eyes to track.

 **V**

My parents came home a few hours later, unaware of me skipping school or the vampires that almost killed me today. Mom was all smiles and energy as she announced that she was making tacos and kept herself busy in the kitchen since she walked in the house. Even my dad seemed a little more relaxed, which I didn't think he had a right to be, as he sat on the couch and answered some emails on his laptop with ESPN playing the latest updates from the Mariner's spring training in the background.

I was curled up on the loveseat, a thick blanket surrounding me, as I tried my best to pretend everything was fine. I acknowledged my parents and answered their questions about how my day went and tried to listen to what they did while I was at school, but Jasper's words rattling around my head were too much to ignore. The possibility of vampires lurking around the house right now was something that kept my muscles locked tight and stiff.

Maybe this was the vampires' point in hunting me. Maybe they literally wanted to scare me to death. It made sense, with the light cuts, torn balls, forcing the sense of dread to rise within me whenever I found myself alone and too exposed. It was a _game_ to them. I was a game.

My eyes widened while highlights of Suzuki's batting averages scrolled across the screen. If I was a game to them, that meant Waylon's death wasn't an accident. He hadn't gotten in the way. He'd been a warning. How many more would they take me before they finally killed me? Who would be next? My mom? My dad? Bella or Charlie? Whoever it was, I would be powerless to stop it.

I used to think Jasper was a grenade let loose on society. Now I was beginning to think it had been me all along.

By the time my mom finished dinner and I sat at the table, I found myself uncomfortably numb. I couldn't feel the presence of my parents sitting at the table on either side of me, couldn't find the comfort and safety they usually exuded. My ears buzzed while they talked. I didn't smell the steaming food on my plate or taste it. There was only room for the dread welling up inside of me, rising until it filled me up entirely in threatened to rip me apart. If the vampires wanted to destroy me from the inside out, they were succeeding.

"Blaire?" My mom's voice cut barely cut through the terror swallowing me whole. I looked at her, focusing on her widened eyes and forehead crinkled in concern. "Honey, are you okay? You're crying."

I reached up and dabbed at my eye, finally noticing the few tears that overflowed. I _was_ crying. "I'm okay," I muttered to my plate, scooping up the leftover taco filling on my plate with a stray broken piece of shell.

"No, you're not," Mom said, the hardness of her voice surprising me. I stopped pushing things around on my plate. "That's why we need to talk."

"About what?" I asked.

"Bee, you're not… you're not doing okay," Mom said. My hands slid onto my lap and curled into fists. What the hell was going on? "I know things have been really hard these past couple of months, and I'm sorry you've had to deal with the full weight of it like the rest of us. Your dad and I only want to protect you from it, which is why…"

I didn't like the way her words faded into nothingness. I dared a glance at her, but she was staring at my dad across the table. I finally dragged my gaze to the other side. My dad was staring back at her, motionless, but when he saw me staring too, he finally acted.

"It's why we're going to move you back to Seattle," he said. "After the funeral. We'll come back for weekends to finalize the rest of Waylon's affairs, but we think this move will be good for all of us. Make things normal again."

Was he insane? How could anything ever be _normal_? How could I move back when Waylon's killers were here? Threatening every single person I ever loved? I couldn't move back to Seattle, no one could be split up now! The dread was replaced with pure panic now.

"No," I said. My chest expanded with the effort to keep from screaming the word. "I don't want to go back."

"Honey, surely you can see what's been happening to you since Waylon died," my mom murmured. "You've been acting different. You hardly say a word these days, you spend all of your time in your room, no one has even seen you run your drills. It's like we've been living with a ghost."

I didn't speak because I was terrified of what would slip out. I stayed in my room because I was reading all of Waylon's research, searching for loopholes despite Jasper saying his kind were impossible to kill. How could I run drills when I was terrified of being outside?

"Waylon wouldn't want this for you," Mom said gently. "We want to go back to Seattle, so you can get the help you need."

They thought I was crazy.

I stood up, my chair scraping loudly against the laminate flooring. "I'm not going," I said.

"This isn't a debate, Blaire," my dad said.

I didn't really know what it was like for other people to reach their breaking points, but I had a feeling mine was kind of stupid. It didn't necessarily happen when he said those words, but when he merely drummed his fingers on the kitchen table as I glared at him. It was a casual move, it signaled impatience. As if he'd already steeled himself to endure some kind of tantrum I would throw. Like my anger wasn't valid.

Logically, it made sense. They didn't understand what was going on. They never would, if I had anything to do about it. But it was too late. I exploded.

"It is if it means I have to go anywhere with _you_ ," I spat at him. "Do me a favor and stay the fuck out of my life."

"Blaire!" Mom exclaimed, but I was already making my way to the stairs.

"I'm fine!" I shouted at them before storming up the stairs. "You're the people who need help, not me!"

I slammed the door to my room shut and grabbed Jasper's phone, texting Alice's phone.

 _Is Jasper there?_

 **V**

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So many emotions. Poor Blaire, going through psychological breakdowns. Next chapter should be interesting!


	28. A JAILBREAK

Wow, what a wait. Sorry about the delay. I'm excited to announce I wrote two original works this year, and that's what has been taking up most of my time! Things are finally calming down, which means I can get back to my favorite fanfiction!

Hope you guys enjoy it!

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 **26\. A JAILBREAK**

My stomach coiled into my throat as soon as I realized what I'd done. The pixilated envelope floated off the screen to who knew where. No, I knew where. It would go straight to Alice's phone, and then right into Jasper's hands. I snapped his phone shut, ready to throw it under my bed –

A notification lit up the square screen. _Text Message_.

Slowly, I flipped the phone open and grimaced at the screen. _Text Message: Alice_ splayed across the home screen. Oh God, what had I done? Even slower than I opened the phone, I clicked the 'read' button.

 _Here. Is everything okay?_

I didn't want to respond. I wanted to go with my original plan and chuck the phone either under my bed or into some far corner of my room and never see it again.

Instead, I texted back. _Everything's fine._

I scoffed as soon as I sent it off. Maybe he wouldn't respond, since there was no point to the conversation. I turned over in my bed, box springs squeaking under my weight, away from the phone. Maybe I ended this as soon as it began, maybe I could sleep and forget this even happened. _Why_ did I even text him?

The phone buzzed.

I flopped back on my other side and snatched the phone up, opening the message with less fanfare.

 _Liar_ , was all it said.

The single word speared me with its accuracy. Nothing was fine, especially me. Especially since everyone had noticed. My parents' voices carried from downstairs, no doubt talking about their crazy daughter. I was so afraid. So lonely. I frowned at the screen.

 _I know_ , I eventually typed out.

I sent the text, once again warring with myself. Why did I even text him in the first place? Why did I _keep_ texting him? It was a mistake, I knew it, but…

 _I feel so alone_.

I debated on sending it. I erased it.

I rolled away from the phone again, pulling the covers up to my chin. I closed my eyes. I waited the darkness to consume me, to pull me into unconsciousness so I didn't have to deal with the rest of the world, at least for a little while. I couldn't do anything else.

My parents' voices dulled. I barely heard them now. How quickly would they try to ship me back to Seattle? Did I even have a month? I mourned the loss of Waylon's house already, missing it deep in the pit of my heart. If I left now, I knew I would never be able to come back, the pain of it all would be too much. So I couldn't leave, not when there were still people I had to protect. Even if I felt like I couldn't do anything now, I would try to find a way.

Then the phone vibrated again. _What are you doing now?_

My brows furrowed, but I responded. _I'm in bed, like any other grounded teen._

 _Tap, tap, tap._

I shot upright, the phone popping out of my hands. I floundered and grabbed it before it could hit the floor. Then I froze, my heart turning to ice in my chest.

Slowly, so painfully slowly, I turned to look out the window. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I found Jasper hanging off my window sill looking back. Chills worked their way through me.

I flicked my blankets away from me and stood up. I made sure to walk quickly and quietly toward the window. I pushed it open, allowing chilly air into the room. Goosebumps formed on my skin as I stood in front of Jasper. He didn't move an inch, bright golden eyes glimmering at mine in the dark.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered.

"I was… given an idea," he said, his tone light like he was telling a joke. I frowned. "How do you feel about a jailbreak?"

"I guess I'd say I would feel interested," I admitted. "But what would I do?"

He shrugged, the movement reminding me that he still supported himself on the flat side of my house with nothing more than pure body strength. "Do you need to eat?" he asked, casually, like talking wasn't even an effort.

"I hate how you say that," I said. "Normal people just ask, _are you hungry_?"

"I think we've established I'm not exactly… normal," Jasper said. How could I even forget? Maybe despite him doing something so… inhuman as hanging off my window, the mischievousness that twinkled in his eyes made my adrenaline spike. It was a nice change compared to all of the darkness I'd been wrapped up in. I narrowed my eyes.

"Are you trying to change how I feel?" I asked.

"No," he said. My fingers curled into fists when a small smirk formed on his face. "Why? Are you interested in getting sprung?"

I glared at him and the innuendo, even as heat rushed to my cheeks, wondering why he was suddenly being so… "What _are_ you doing here?"

"You asked that already," Jasper said.

"Because you didn't answer the first time," I shot back. "At least not completely."

"I could tell you were bored," he said. "I thought we could change that. And… I felt bad about how we left things earlier. I _do_ want to help you, Blaire."

"Help me or kill me?" I asked. "Because if we're going off of what happened earlier, I don't know if I should trust you." I suddenly realized how close we were as soon as I said the words. I could simply reach out and touch him if I wanted to. He could just as easily reach in and grab me. I took a small step back. Jasper noticed it.

"Maybe you shouldn't," Jasper said, "but I'm still your best shot at getting what you want."

I wanted to go with him. I wanted to disappear into the night. I also wanted to shut the window on his face and go back to bed. I hated the indecision, I hated constantly faltering between loathing and trusting Jasper. I hated that he was the only person – _thing_ – that could help me avenge Waylon. I hated needing him.

But right now, I hated being in this house more.

"What did you want to do tonight?" I asked.

The slight smirk on his lips turned into a self-satisfied Cheshire grin that made me somewhat faint. "I won't lie to you, Emmett's always had a weird human-fantasy about late-night video games and eating McDonald's."

"That's… oddly specific," I said.

"Em's an oddly specific type of guy," Jasper replied.

"So, that's what we'd do?" I asked, my nervousness resurfacing. "Hang out with your family, or…" It sounded so… ordinary. So normal. But then I had to remind myself that they were vampires who drank _blood_ , and things stopped being normal. "Wait, didn't you have a different name for it?"

"A group of vampires is usually called a coven," he answered.

A coven full of vampires.

"But they prefer family," he amended.

A family full of vampires.

"Fine," I said. "We can do that. But my parents –"

"I can make them feel secure," Jasper said. "They won't even think about checking your room tonight."

This had to be crossing some sort of line, I knew it. Letting Jasper use his powers on them had to be so, so wrong, but… they also crossed a line by trying to send me back to Seattle. They didn't even understand. I didn't trust myself to speak, so I nodded.

"You might want to wear something warm," he said. Then he let go of the window and fell.

I didn't move to make sure he was okay, I wasn't even afraid for him. Instead, adrenaline filled my veins again as I turned to grab a hoodie out from one of my drawers and throw it over my head. I slipped on a pair of fuzzy moccasins. It seemed like a good enough outfit for late-night video games and… McDonald's. Did they even _eat_ burgers?

I grabbed Jasper's phone and walked to the window to close it. But movement caught my eye from the ground. When I looked down, Jasper was standing there waiting on me. He reached up and motioned for me to…

"What?" I said.

"I can put them at ease, but I can't erase a memory of you walking out of the house," he answered. "You're gonna have to jump."

I glared at him. "No way."

"You want out? I'm giving you an out. Let's go, darlin'."

My face probably looked as red as Bella's. " _Don't_ call me that," I hissed.

"Then jump," he replied.

I floundered for a second, debated on calling the entire thing off. But that was stupid. I was being stupid, completely stupid. If I wanted to kill a vampire, I could certainly jump out of my window. I swung my leg out over the edge, reaching up to also try and close the window at the same time so my room wouldn't be a complete ice box by the time I got back, whenever that would be…

I jerked the window down, making it slide hard and fast into my leg still half in my room. I tried to shimmy out of the way, to be smooth, but that all ended as soon as I pulled my other leg out of the window and fell –

I didn't even have time to scream. I landed in Jasper's cold, hard arms, my head snapping back behind me. I groaned. My body ached at the impact. I wondered if landing on the ground would have been better. I was pretty sure I got whiplash from the way my head flew back too.

"Are… you all right?" he asked. At least he had the decency to sound sheepish.

The pain was fleeting, but I clutched my head just to make him feel bad. "Fine," I grumbled. Then I realized he hadn't yet put me down. The chill of his arms seeped through my clothes. "Um… What are you –"

"I didn't bring a car," Jasper said.

"Then how did you get here?" I asked.

"I ran," he said.

"You…"

"Vampires are faster on our feet than any car," he explained. "More versatile too. How do you think I got here so fast?"

"I don't know, I guess I thought turning into a bat was a viable option."

He snorted. "Myth."

"Right, of course," I said. "Vampires are real, but the whole bat-transforming thing isn't. How rude of me to assume otherwise."

"I'll forgive it this time," he said, "so as long as you don't try and offer me garlic bread."

"Wait, so the garlic _is_ a thing?"

" _Now_ I'm offended," Jasper said.

Of course. I rolled my eyes. "So how are we going to get to your house now?"

He gave me a long, meaningful look. I realized again that he was still holding me. Oh God. Oh no –

"You're kidding," I said.

"Afraid not, darlin'," he said. "You like roller coasters, right?"

My stomach was already churning. "Why –"

He took off.

My head knocked back at pure force and wind that suddenly roared through my ears and made my eyes water. I threw my arms around Jasper's neck and held on as tight as I could, beyond caring if I hurt him or not. I tried to scream, but the speed Jasper ran stole the air from my lungs. Evergreen trees turned into one mottled green blur, the smell of pine and wet air filling my nose. It was all so much – too much – that I had to duck my head into Jasper's chest under his chin.

I looked down at the ground, which was also just a blur beneath his feet. My mortal eyes couldn't catch on to his movements, I knew I'd get a headache if I even tried. It looked like he wasn't even touching the ground, especially when I barely heard a sound beyond the air rushing past my ears. It was like… flying.

I straightened up, my nails digging into Jasper's shoulders, so I could take it all in.

"Here," Jasper said, his mouth dangerously close to my ear. His hands tightened against my side and my thigh, and in a second, he flipped me so I was on his back. I clamped my arms around his neck and wrapped my legs around his waist, clinging to him for dear life with my eyes wide open. I leaned my head against the side of Jasper's so it wouldn't fly back with the force he ran. "Look up."

I did. The sky above us didn't seem to move as fast as everything around us. Clouds passed over us and occasionally revealed a sliver of starlight between them. It made me feel small in the best way, like what was happening didn't matter. Not really. While I hurtled into the darkness alone, the sky was constant. Steady. Much like the being I clung to.

This wouldn't be possible without him. Even if Jasper was less-than-desirable company, he was still someone who knew what was happening to me. I wasn't as alone as I thought.

Lights poked out of the trees ahead of us. They grew brighter as Jasper ran toward them. In the same instant, they turned into massive windows belonging to an angular modern-style house tucked into the woods. Jasper slowed to a walk just before the treeline. I quickly took it as my cue to get off. I unwound my arms from around his shoulders and my legs from around his waist and slipped to the ground. When I let go, my legs buckled out from under me. I gasped, unable to stop myself from crumpling to the ground –

Jasper grabbed my shoulders and pulled me back up. I slumped into his chest, and he held me there. "Easy," he said. "Easy now."

Being as close to him as I was shouldn't have felt as easy as it was.

"Sorry," I breathed. I kept my eyes focused on my hands lying flat against him as I took a few steadying breaths and regain the strength in my shaking legs. Jasper's thumb swept against my shoulder.

"It's all right," he said. "Take your time. I'm sorry, I should have gone slower –"

"It's okay," I said. "It was… fun?"

He chuckled, the action making his chest vibrate. The sensation helped me relax even more –

"Is this how'd you do it?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean is this how you would kill me," I said. Jasper went still. I pushed myself from his arms so I could stand on my own. He let me go easily, but held his arms out slightly – just in case to catch me? Or to grab me? "Lull me into a false sense of security with your – your super power, or whatever, and end it as soon as the timing's right?"

He frowned. "Does it matter? That life ended for me before your parents were even born."

"Before my _parents_ –" I spluttered. "How old _are_ you?"

"How rude," Jasper said. "Just for asking like that, I think I'll make it a surprise."

Indignation roiled through me. "I don't care," I said. "The hunting thing still matters because you said you wanted to kill me this afternoon," I snapped.

"I didn't mean – It wasn't like –"

"It wasn't like what, Jasper?" I demanded. "It wasn't like you were actually serious? I may not be a vampire, but that doesn't mean I'm not an idiot. Don't lie to me."

"I never have," he said. "When have I ever kept anything from you?"

"Just –" I huffed and shook my head. "Just forget it."

"Gladly," he said in a way that made my temper flare. He strode past me, leaving me to stumble through the undergrowth after him until we broke out into the clearing the house sat in the middle of. It was large, its own mini-mansion in the heart of the wilderness, lit with small outdoors lamps. The entire house was practically made up of windows. All of the lights were on, and I could see people – the _Cullens_ – wandering around inside.

I quickly looked away, my eyes skipping across the lawn and the spacious driveway before landing on a long garage filled with cars. I spied a Mercedes, Rosalie's BMW, the gray Volvo, Emmett's Jeep, and Jasper's silver motorcycle. I understood why Jasper liked it more than a car now. Riding that probably felt almost like he was running.

Behind me, I heard a door open. I turned just in time to see Alice standing at the front door of her house, wearing leggings, a tank top, and a soft gray cardigan with a mug in her hands. She looked the picture of cozy and warm. She was frowning at Jasper. "I _told_ you not to be sarcastic," she told him, sounding petulant.

Jasper rolled his eyes and walked to the house, his hands in his pockets, leaving me to keep up with him. Alice's eyes landed on mine and she grinned. "Don't worry," she told me. "He'll apologize in… ten minutes."

I stared at her incredulously as I walked up the steps to the porch. Her smile didn't falter under my stare, and she held out the mug to me. I took the steaming cup, my eyes widening when I realized it was filled with frothy hot chocolate. There were even a couple of marshmallows floating at the top. "It was going to be five, but then I started talking. He just needs to sulk for a minute."

"Knock it off, Alice," Jasper said from further in the house. Alice grimaced.

"Make that thirty," she said, sighing. "Either way, he'll come around. Come on, we've already got all the food laid out. Emmett's really excited!"

I didn't have a chance to say anything because Alice already wrapped her arm around my shoulders and whisked me into the house, right into a den of vampires.

 **V**

* * *

I don't know about you guys, but I love some Jasper/Blaire banter. When things are good with them, it's good.


	29. THE CULLENS

I'm editing the two projects I finished in 2018. Idk why no one told me it was so hard.

Enjoy this overdue update! Thanks for sticking with me!

* * *

 **27\. THE CULLENS**

I didn't give a lot of thought as to how or where vampires lived, mainly because I was still trying to get over the fact that some of them somehow didn't kill people – at least, they somehow didn't kill people _now_. But they used to. Including the vampire that brought me here, who was stalking toward the middle of the cavernous living room to slump on one of the massive plush light-colored couches.

Everything was in varied shades of white: from the walls, to the furniture, to the patterned rugs accenting the hardwood floors, all of it. Light hardwood floors and exposed beams holding up the large staircase and adorning the ceiling above us framed the sea of brightness and balanced it.

The entire house was filled with soft lights that illuminated the home in a hazy glow. I realized they were meant to be ambient like a theatre, because the hulking eighty-inch flat-screen TV hugging the wall in front of the couches would be the star of the show. A glass coffee table in front of the TV was filled with so many snacks I couldn't keep my expression in check. I swore my eyes practically bugged out of my head.

From another part of the house, I could hear something _crackling_. The warm scent of meat cooking and bread toasting met my nose. My mouth watered.

"We weren't sure if you actually liked McDonald's, or Taco Bell, or Wendy's, or – or whatever other fast food restaurants there are," Alice admitted from beside me. I jumped, not expecting her voice to be so close to my ear. I smiled sheepishly and quickly shied away from her, stepping further into the living room. "And then we also realized that we're a little too far away from… well anything, really. It would get cold by the time we brought it home."

"Hope you're hungry," Emmett said, emerging from some doorway that led further into the house. His hulking form nearly swallowed up the large open threshold. His wide grin made me bristle. "Because you're going to need the energy to beat me."

"We'll see about that," I said as Alice ghosted past me, nodding her head for me to follow.

"Come on, I think Esme's almost done," she said.

I trailed behind her, the house opening up to me as I walked further in. To the left was a large staircase leading up to another floor. Windows made up the entire back wall of the first floor, offering a nearly panoramic views of the forest behind it. At the back of the living room was a sleek black grand piano that shone in the soft lighting.

"Edward's," Alice answered my unspoken question. The crackling noises became more prominent as we neared it, then Alice turned right, exposing a large kitchen. A young woman stood at the stove, cooking burger patties on a skillet. A toaster ticked beside her, no doubt browning buns. "Blaire, this is our mom – for all intents and purposes, of course – Esme."

Esme looked up at me and smiled, and I could not for the life of me figure out how the hell the Cullens managed to make everyone believe she was the mother of four teenagers. She almost looked as young as they did! And she was just as beautiful, in a classic sort of way with her rounded face and soft light brown hair styled in large curls. Mostly, she looked _nice_ compared to the others. "It's nice to meet you, Blaire," she said, her voice sweet like honey.

Then she looked down. I followed her gaze to my hands, where the mug of hot chocolate was still nestled in my palms. Her smile became bemused. "Alice, I said make a chocolate milkshake. To go with the burgers."

"What?" Alice plucked the mug out of my hands to inspect it for herself. "This isn't that? But it has milk in it – and chocolate – and I shook it."

Esme laughed quietly and shook her head. She took the mug herself and put it to the side before smiling ruefully at me. "Remind me not to let them go grocery shopping unsupervised again," she said.

I frowned at Alice. "You don't know what a milkshake is?"

She looked so dejected I had to bite back a smirk. "I guess not," she said morosely. "We, um, don't really… eat human food."

"Oh." I said, my eyes roaming back to the skillet on the stove and the four burgers cooking on it. Did that mean I was expected to eat _all_ of those? "You didn't have to go out of your way for me –"

"It's not going out of our way," Esme said. "I enjoy cooking. It's nice to do it for someone who can appreciate it."

I tentatively smiled back. "I'm sure I will. It smells amaz –"

"This house smells _disgusting_ ," a female voice said loudly from behind us. I turned around, finding Rosalie standing at the top of the staircase. She was dressed in her own casual-chic, though her outfit seemed reminiscent of a Victoria Secret model. Her gaze was cold as she stared at me. Like a true predator.

Her eyes skipped to the living room. "Was that what you were going for when you wanted to bring her over? To make her feel more _at home_?"

A growl, guttural and deep, tore through the air and made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. It sounded like a tiger was in the living room – sitting on the couch, more specifically. When I looked at Jasper, he was motionless like a statue. He didn't even look like he'd turned his head.

"Rosalie…" Esme warned.

Rosalie rolled her eyes and looked back at me. "This is stupid," she told me. "You know that, right? You're going to get yourself killed running around with him. Or worse."

" _Nothing's_ going to happen," Alice said. She walked past me and curled into one of the armchairs near the couches, closest to Jasper. "We took every precaution –"

"Really?" Rosalie asked her flatly. "You took every precaution when you invited her over here? When you made sure Carlisle had a night shift and Edward was out with his own _little_ –"

"Babe," Emmett tried to call to her.

"Oh, Rose," Alice groaned. " _Don't_ –"

"– _blood_ bank," Rosalie finished.

"Rosalie –" Esme admonished with a surprised gasp, but she was cut off by an unnatural quiet stilling the air, one that was filled with uncertainty. It was so intense it nearly choked me. A thrill of fear ran down my spine, but it wasn't my own.

Not when I felt rage crackling through my veins.

"His own… _what_?" I demanded.

Rosalie stared at me. I met her gaze with equal fire. If she wouldn't try to hide what she was with me, I wouldn't try to hide what I was capable of from her. She narrowed her eyes.

"It's not like that and you know it," Alice snapped. "None of it is. Why can't you just let this run its course?"

"Because I'm not naïve," Rosalie hissed, and it actually sounded like a hiss. "Jasper and Edward are putting this entire family in danger of exposure by playing _human_ –"

Indignation rolled through me. "No one's playing anything –"

"You could have fooled me with your moronic attempt at the nineties-themed supernatural vigilante game you've started," Rosalie said. I was kind of amazed she actually fit all of that in one breath. "And with your friend forcing Edward into playing house, though I'm not sure he minds –"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I demanded.

"It would seem that…" Alice started off. "Edward and Bella may be… involved."

Rosalie snorted. "Didn't you know?" she asked condescendingly, like she already knew the answer.

No… I didn't… know anything. Why didn't she tell me? What the hell was Bella doing? "Involved…" I echoed. "Like… Like… Like they're _dating_?"

"That's a word for it," Rosalie mumbled. Horror washed through me. Oh my God. "I can't decide which of you is more foolish. You for thinking you could actually kill one of us, or her for thinking she could actually _be_ with one of us –"

"Don't talk about Bella like that," I snapped. " _Ever_. Or else we'll both find out how stupid I actually am."

Pride swirled in my chest, and I was too mad to know it wasn't mine. I glanced at the couch, noticing Jasper had swiveled his body around so he sat on the back of it, watching both of us like he was a spectator in a tennis match. It would have been comical, if he didn't look so serious. Alice pressed her face in her hand.

"Am I the only one who thinks this is absolutely insane?" Rosalie demanded. "This is all doomed to fail. With Edward finding his singer and _whatever_ Jasper's seemed to find in this would-be vampire slayer –"

The words stung. Jasper was suddenly on the stairs, in Rosalie's face. In the same time, Emmett made it across the room and stood at the bottom step. " _Stop_ ," Jasper commanded.

Calm erupted and washed over the room, forcing my anger to fizzle out, but it was tinged with a small note of fear, anxiety – no. Desperation.

What the hell was I doing? I shouldn't have come here. I needed to get out before it was too late.

Esme suddenly appeared in the middle of the living room, standing next to Emmett at the stairs. "This is over now," she said. Her voice was calm, still sweet, but it took on a whole new level of authority I hadn't expected from her. "Rose, you should remember it wasn't that long ago that we had to be flexible for your circumstances. We support each other in this family, and we extend that support to everyone who needs it."

Oh, so I was supposed to be their would-be charity case? Hell no. I spied a sliding glass door leading outside next to the piano. "This was a mistake," I muttered before surging for the handle.

"Blaire, wait –" Esme said, but I was already on the house's wraparound porch, stalking toward the front.

Growls erupted in the house, wild and primal. Terror iced my veins, accented by a sharp, fleeting sense of anger. The latter wasn't mine.

 _WHOOSH!_

I whipped around, just in time to catch a blonde blur shoot out of the house and into the forest beyond. Even if I could barely see her form, I knew it was Rosalie. Trees practically bowed back at the force of her speed before shuddering back into place. I glared after her, hoping a rogue branch ripped some of her perfect blonde locks off of her perfect scalp.

When the rustling of the forest faded with Rosalie's departure, I finally let the tightness in my throat to take over. Tears made my eyes sting, but I tried to fight them back as I strode to the front of the house. I wouldn't cry, I wouldn't cry, I wouldn't cry, I wouldn't –

"Blaire?" Alice called. I spun around, bracing myself as she slipped out of the front door. "I'm so sorry –"

"She's right," I said, folding my arms over my chest as a breeze cut through the clearing. "I shouldn't be here."

"Blaire, no, _please_ ," Alice said. She crossed the space between us in less than a second. I didn't flinch even though she stopped inches away from me. Her arms were out, as if she meant to hold my shoulders, but she hesitated. "You should be here, don't worry about Rose, she doesn't understand –"

"No, she doesn't," I sighed. "I don't even understand it, either. Everything is so… fucked."

"I know," she said, surprising me. "I'm sorry. Things would have been different – maybe – if I had seen it coming. If I knew before… Nothing would have stopped us from saving Waylon, Blaire. I promise."

"Why though?" I asked. "Why do any of you want to help me? You don't owe me anything. I'm prey to you. Shouldn't this be nature taking its course?"

"But it isn't," Alice said. For the first time since I met her, her voice was measured and low. Her words were deliberate, chosen with care, and they made my head spin. "You being hunted – _dying_ – isn't nature taking its course."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I demanded.

"It's not right," she said. "It's just… not."

I tightened my arms closer to my chest, trying to block the cold air from sinking further into my skin. "You know what I'm going to say to that, right?" I asked.

Alice sighed. "Oh great, more vague bullshit to add on top of my bull-shit answer-pile," she replied in a monotone. "Is being chronically vague to the point of bringing people physical _pain_ a side effect of drinking blood?"

I snorted. It was true. She offered me a small half-smile.

"Look… I know this doesn't make sense," she said. "And I know how frustrated and scared you are, and I know that while Jasper means well, he's not very good at putting people at ease – without his gift, of course, so he's kind of lost. It's why I suggested that you should come over tonight. I thought you could use the distraction."

"But I don't –"

"Want to be distracted," she said. "It's the last thing you think you can afford to be right now. I know, I know."

"Is this how conversations usually go for you?" I asked, bemused.

She answered with a slightly wider smile. "Only when I'm trying to convince certain people to stay for burgers and video games."

I smirked. "Don't ask me why, but I think it might be working," I admitted. "Especially since Rosalie is gone."

"Why do you think I kept egging her on?" she asked mischievously. Then her expression melted into something a lot more sincere. "This secret is a burden, one that you've had to shoulder alone so you can protect the people you love. It's noble, and so very brave, and it means more to any of us than you can know. We're grateful for your trust, so we just wanted to make tonight a little less… lonely for you."

My throat tightened at the raw honesty of her words. This couldn't be some trick, could it? I didn't know how I would be able to tell. But I had nothing else to lose at this point, so why couldn't I believe her? Just for tonight, at least.

I was so tired of being the only person trying to stay afloat in a sea of uncertainty.

"Okay," I said, quietly.

Alice smiled. "Okay," she echoed before leading the way back into the house.

We made our way back into the living room, and I plopped on the corner cushion of the couch stationed in front of the TV. Alice sank down on the other end of the couch, the polite distance she kept spoke volumes of respect to me. I reached out to pick up the first controller I could get my hands on. "You ready to get your ass handed to you, Cullen?" I called back to Emmett.

The loveseat framing the right side of the living room scooted backward a little as Emmett vaulted himself over the side, a controller in his hands and a wicked grin on his face. "I already made my bets with Jazz," he said.

Esme breezed past me, setting a plate filled with a burger and chips on the coffee table. I smiled up at her gratefully, letting her trail a hand along my shoulder as she strode away. I was surprised I didn't find the move as chilling as I would have before. When she was out of sight, the lights in the house dimmed and the TV flared to life.

"I'm counting on you," Jasper called. I glanced around, finding him standing next to the kitchen, across from Esme. His skin glowed cold in the harsh light of the TV screen, but his eyes were warm, like the small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. I could almost smile back, but I turned to look at the TV before it would break.

The opening sequence to _FIFA07_ scrolled across the screen. "Hell yes," I muttered. "Don't worry, I got this."

"Told you she'd like it," Jasper said to Emmett. I pretended to ignore him while I scrolled through the team list. I clicked on Chelsea, smirking.

"She'll hate it by the time she plays me," Emmett replied, a competitive edge in his tone.

"She's right here, so you can stop talking about me like I'm not," I said, sliding off the couch so I could sit closer to the coffee table. I set the controller and waited for Emmett to choose his team while I grabbed the burger.

Emmett chuckled. "She's gonna fit in just fine."

* * *

Tbh my biggest struggle with this chapter was trying to capture Alice's character and mesh it with Blaire, so she could convince Bee to play video games. I swore I rewrote their conversation a million times. Did you know that Blaire is super difficult to convince of literally anything? I didn't. Shocked and hurt.

I'm obsessed with Blaire and Rosalie's dynamic. I can't wait to write more of them soon!

In other news, is anyone as excited about the upcoming baseball scene as I am?


	30. JASPER

Oh my good gravy what the heckin' heck is this?! Twitch updated?! So quickly?!

Yes. Because edits are hard and I solve my problems by avoiding them like any rational person.

Enjoy this _very_ self-indulgent chapter. I'm dying to hear your thoughts on it!

* * *

 **28\. JASPER**

We played _FIFA_ for three hours straight.

In that time, I only managed to beat Emmett once, and I had a feeling it was because he was getting tired of me growling and snarling and cussing to myself every time I lost a game. Coincidentally, I won the last game before Emmett decided he should find Rosalie. Or meet her in the backyard. I didn't care. The only thing that mattered was that I didn't see her for the rest of the night, and it was a relief.

And I _ate_. So much. I didn't even realize I was so hungry until I devoured two of Esme's burgers and half of a bag of chips that had been laid out on the coffee table. For someone who didn't have a vested interest in human food, Esme was an incredible cook. I should have known from her cookies (which she didn't make that night, unfortunately), but I guessed part of me was hesitant to acknowledge it after I found out their diet wouldn't appeal to the average mortal.

When Emmett abandoned the game, Alice showed me her wardrobe. Her closet was massive, filled to the brim with designer brands and nothing else. When she noticed me ogling a pair of Gucci booties, she demanded we have an impromptu fashion show, fully set with blasting music and everything. We chose several outfits to surprise each other with, each one becoming more ridiculous than the next. Alice Cullen somehow made me laugh harder than I had in _weeks_ – which was saying a lot, when I didn't think I would ever laugh again.

I was terrified to even let myself think it, but… all of the Cullens exuded their own version of comfort that made me feel safe in their home. Emmett's competitive energy resounded with my own and forced me to come back to life, Esme's warmth made me feel steady, Alice's happiness pulled my own back to the surface, and Jasper…

Jasper didn't really say anything to me throughout the night besides a passing comment or two. He gave me enough space to talk to and get to know the rest of his family – coven, not a true family – on my own terms and in my own way, but if I ever sought him out, I realized he was never too far away. As I found myself dozing in a pile of Chanel and Louis Vuitton at three o'clock in the morning, it was Jasper who woke me up and offered to take me home.

Freezing winds ripping through my hair and Jasper's solid arms surrounding me as he ran to my house brought a second wind to my lungs and made electricity shoot through my veins. The forest around us was silent, fully asleep, as he shot through it like a bullet. I stared at the trees as they whipped past, at the sky lazily drifting above, dread settling into the pit of my stomach when I realized the only reprieve to the worst week of my _life_ was ending with every one of his rapid footfalls.

When I saw my uncle's house, shrouded in darkness, it was enough to bring tears to my eyes as reality crashed around me. It looked so cold, and even though I knew my parents were inside, it still looked so empty. No one in there knew what I knew. They didn't know the true danger in this world, and even though I was glad I was protecting my family from it, it didn't ease the burden. It didn't make anything less frustrating since my parents thought I was crazy.

Jasper leapt up and gripped my narrow window sill with one hand and pushed the glass up with the other. He slipped inside before I let go of his shoulders. My legs trembled, forcing me to drop into my desk chair.

And that was it. The spell was broken. I'd dropped back into my own reality, where everything was still horribly wrong. Jasper looked out the open window, down at the ground below, like he was already climbing halfway out of it in his mind –

"Do – Do you want to stay?" I blurted out. "For a minute?"

Oh God, was he _frozen_? Did vampires experience short circuiting? Was that what was happening? He slowly looked up at me, his brows furrowing, looking confused as if I just asked if we could go parasailing. "What?"

I couldn't believe I even asked it myself, and I was regretting it with every passing second. Abort. Abort, abort, abort.

"I – um… I was just… I don't know." This was so awkward. _Abort_! My interlocked fingers twisted tightly around themselves and the oversized sleeves of my crewneck. Heat soared up into my cheeks, and I shot up out of my chair so I could turn away from him. Abort _now_! "Um never mind. Don't worry about it."

Jasper chuckled. The sound was like honey in its smoothness and just as sweet to my ears. "I think it's too late for that now. Tell me."

I groaned before I reached up and yanked my hair free from its ponytail, hoping the color would detract from the blush that had to be on my face. "I um… was just… wondering if you wanted to… talk? For a minute?"

I finally turned around with my arms folded tight across my chest, my teeth grinding themselves into dust, as I finally looked at Jasper.

He leaned back against the wall next to my window, watching me carefully. His eyes flashed in the moonlight as a wicked, self-assured smirk tugged the corner of his mouth up. "Really?" he asked. The question rang out more like a challenge.

In that moment, I wouldn't have cared if those vampires busted into my house and took me. I wanted to _die_. "Forget it," I said. "Forget I said anything –"

Instead of leaving, he reached out and lowered my window until only a sliver remained. Enough for fresh, crisp night air to filter in the room, but not make it unbearably cold for me. Somehow, that small movement struck a match within me and I was burning. Jasper's eyes seemed to glimmer with their own fire. "What do you want to talk about?" he asked.

Shit. I hadn't gotten that far. "I… I don't know," I admitted. "I guess I just wanted to… to thank you. For tonight. I didn't realize how much I needed to get out."

"It wasn't a problem," he said, still amused. "I didn't expect you to have so much fun, with being in a coven of vampires, and all."

I cringed. "Yeah… I didn't either. But Alice is great."

"It's impossible not to be fond of her," he agreed.

I couldn't help but bristle at the offhand comment. All night, the two had bantered and I noticed Alice had brushed her hand along his toned bicep more than once whenever she had to pass him in the house. Even though Jasper said they weren't in a relationship, their actions spoke of a comfort they had with each other that couldn't have just come from something platonic.

"So… You said you met Alice before the others?" I asked. I tried to keep my tone light, impartial. From the way Jasper cocked his head to the side, I knew I failed.

"Are you prying now, Holcomb?" he asked.

"Is that a problem, _Hale_?" I challenged.

"Whitlock."

I frowned. "What?"

He grinned, exposing his perfect white teeth that I knew could shred me to ribbons. My heart skipped a beat, and warning bells rang in the back of my head, but I didn't shy away from him. "Hale is Rosalie's last name," he explained. "Not mine. My name is Jasper Whitlock."

"Whitlock," I echoed, quietly.

His smile softened. "Alice said I'd like the way that'd sound," he said.

Did she? I barely noticed, my attention on Jasper's words as they grated me in the most delicious way, like a flint against a rock. Sparks threatened to erupt along my skin. I tried to push them down, but it threatened to be impossible with the way Jasper's eyes followed me as I crossed my room. They were intense, laser focused, and I considered asking him to open the window a little wider because the room felt way too hot.

This was dangerous. I needed to _stop_.

I knew I shouldn't have smiled back at him as I sat on my bed, crossing my legs underneath me. I knew I should have given up my line of questioning because it _wasn't safe_ , but I was in so much danger already. What more could happen to me? "Why do you always try to avoid answering my questions?" I asked.

"Because I know you won't like the answers," he returned easily. While his words were playful and his smile was coy, I could see none of it reached his eyes.

My smile fell. "But you'll tell me anyway, won't you?"

"I haven't been able to deny you yet," he sighed.

I waited.

"We met in 1948," he began. "Well, I suppose I should say she found me in 1948. Apparently Alice always knew _where_ we would meet – a diner in Philadelphia – and a general sense of when, but not an exact day. If she were telling the story, she would blame that on me, because I kept changing my mind about going into that diner at all. Things were harder for me, back then. I was still… hunting when I met her."

Hunting _humans_ , but he didn't have to clarify. I was prepared for it, but hearing him say it aloud still made my skin crawl. Jasper frowned like he knew it too.

"I had less control than I do now," he explained. "Alice understood that. When I finally decided to walk into that diner, the very first words I heard were, _you kept me waiting long enough_ , followed with this – this vampire with eyes I'd never seen before. We sat there for hours, talking. She told me about her lifestyle, the Cullens, and how we had that same possibility for us if we went to meet them. I was wary at first, but Alice has this way of exuding hope when you need it the most.

"We were only together for a few years," Jasper went on, affirming my worst fears. I reached back to massage the back of my neck under my hair, just to do something with my hands. "We ended our partnership shortly after we joined the Cullens. Amicably. We realized we were much better as friends."

"Oh," I said, nodding.

"I was in a dark place," Jasper suddenly said. "I had been ever since I was turned. Alice was the first light I'd ever seen in my existence. She's so optimistic all the time. I clung to those emotions until I could learn to experience them again for myself."

"I get it," I said quickly, but the words came out brittle. I hated it. I hated how I could be so affected by his words, his past. "She's great. I get it."

"No, you don't," Jasper said.

"I do," I retorted. When I finally looked up at him, he was still beside my window, watching me. I stared back. He finally looked away, scrubbing a hand over his jaw, angular enough to probably cut diamonds before he stretched further up to rake his fingers through his blond curls. Alice was _so_ lucky and I hated her for it. "You're probably, like, a million years old. I think I'd be an idiot if I thought you weren't doing anyone – I – I mean _anything_ – just doing, you know, whatever – with your time –"

"I wasn't," he said. "Not really. Not until…"

I didn't know I was leaning forward on my bed toward Jasper until his voice became strained and his words drifted into silence. I stilled, readying myself for what he would say next.

We were on the edge of something, I realized. We had been for a while.

We were constantly taking one step forward, opening up to each other, only to take two steps back. It had been like a game, of sorts, where I would toe out to learn more about Jasper and his world, then feint back when the answers were too much. Jasper hadn't shied away from me once, despite how often I dodged him. He once called me a fighter, but in the quiet of my bedroom, I realized I had been a coward.

The monsters hunting me were treating it like a game. If I wanted to beat them, I needed to stop playing so safely. I needed to start attacking with the same all-consuming intensity I used in any soccer game. I was the person my team depended on to finish a play. I would finish these vampires in the same way.

It would start with no longer avoiding Jasper. He was my teammate in this, wasn't he? I needed to learn how to trust him – at least to some degree. I needed to handle this next play with the same poise I demanded from myself in every practice. I would start now. I shuddered with barely repressed anticipation. "Until what?" I finally dared to ask.

Jasper must have sensed my resolve. He stared at me evenly now. I could see no lie in his gaze, no pretense, no calculation. In our own corner tucked away from the rest of the world, he didn't seem like a timeless monster and I didn't feel like a helpless mortal. We were two beings who had been brought out by the moonlight, reaching for one another from the darkness.

"Until you," he finally answered.

The words might as well had been accompanied by throwing a bucket of ice over me, with the way my body froze and my lungs contracted tightly in my chest. I could barely _breathe_ , much less respond. Until _me_? What the hell was that supposed to mean?

"You remind me of what it's like to be human," he explained. "You've shown me why I'm living this life. You've proven to me that it's all been for a reason."

His words struck me like a bolt of lightning. My heart thudded in a disjointed rhythm. My skin prickled with the lingering sensation of it.

"Can't you feel it?" he asked, quietly. "The way I react to you?"

I _could_ feel it. I barely heard him over the rushing in my ears, or the blood boiling in my veins in the wake of his honesty. It was like I was on a roller coaster taking a free-fall. I could feel a torrent of emotion: the sudden upswing of joy tangled with the simultaneous downward spiral of apprehension and the overbearing tension –

I fisted my hands into my sheets as I let Jasper's emotions settle over me. He smirked. "You sparked this within me, and you keep feeding the flames like you're gasoline," he said. "You make me burn brighter than I have in a hundred and fifty years."

He took a slow, deliberate step forward. Further into my room. Closer to my bed. The apprehension spiked, making my heartrate skyrocket. I was so glad I was sitting, because I was sure I would have been dizzy by now. And he'd only taken a step. _One step_!

Jasper's ability could allow him to manipulate people's emotions. In the few circumstances he ever used it on me, the emotions been thrown at me in waves that – while affected me – I'd known didn't belong to me. But in these small instances where he ensnared my complete attention, I wondered if he could also draw out my own intensity. I scooted closer to the edge of the bed, closer to _him_. "Maybe… you're gasoline to my fire, too," I admitted.

My breath hitched when he closed the remaining space between us by kneeling at the base of my bed. He peered up at me from under his lashes, his blond hair bleaching in the beams of silver light that filtered in from my window. "This could never go any further," he said.

"I know," I replied. And I did. We were too different. Completely other. Despite the quiet little corner we'd etched out for ourselves in my room at almost four o'clock in the morning, he was still a monster and I was still a mortal. Inches away from each other, in the cover of darkness, was as close as we would ever get.

"And yet…" he started, reaching out. I didn't flinch away as his fingertip trailed up my cheekbone. I didn't move to lean into it, either. "My soul reaches for yours."

Was that what this was? Why I constantly felt a pull toward Jasper Whitlock even when I tried to push away?

He didn't give me time to mull it over. He was on his feet and backing up to my window. "You should sleep," he murmured.

I wanted to scoff at him. As if I would be sleeping at all tonight. But I said nothing, only watched him as he pushed the window up and slipped outside. He dropped it closed as he fell and disappeared into the night.

 **V**

* * *

I wish FanFic would let you insert emojis in the text. Because my final note would definitely be the smirking emoji, but like a lot of them.

It's also just come to my attention that this story has reached over 100k reads! That's seriously amazing! Thank you all so much for reading, favoriting this story, following it, and most importantly reviewing! Your words always make me smile!

So with that in mind, what are your thoughts on this chapter...?


	31. CHALLENGE

Listen I just _really_ hate edits, okay?

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 **29\. CHALLENGE**

From the time Jasper left until my alarm blared for me to get ready for school, I laid in my bed, awake, my thoughts in a constant whirlwind that wasn't going to slow down any time soon.

They circled around the same three subjects: the vampires hunting me, Jasper, and soccer.

I had practice today. Coach Davis had been gracious enough to let me take as much time as I needed, but I knew I took off more time than necessary because I was so worried about the danger I had the potential of putting myself, and most importantly my teammates, in. I spent classes imagining scenarios where I was out on the field, Lauren Mallory trying to swipe the ball for me, when a rogue vampire would shoot out of the woods and swipe at her instead. Turning the soccer field into a bloodbath was a constant nightmare, one I didn't want to live out.

But the time for that was over. These vampires were winning a game with no opponent, and I would change that starting today. I would beat them. I would hurt them the way they hurt me. That was the point of all this. The thought of dealing back all the suffering they caused me was enough to make me braver than I had been. And if they would sink low enough to attack me at a public school in the middle of the day, I would be ready. And I would have Jasper there to back me up.

I had to trust him for that, and it was something that was becoming easier to grasp. Especially after the way we left things only an hour ago. My heart was _still_ racing from the experience. There was so much that had been said, but it led to more questions. After everything was said and done, what would happen after that?

 _This could never go any further…_

No. It couldn't.

 _BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

I startled as my alarm clock blared before reaching over and slapping the button off, sighing into the silence of my room. I hauled out of bed and pulled out an outfit from my various drawers and closet that I'd decided on in my mind earlier this morning, resigned to leaving the safety of my room and facing the rest of the house.

At least I hadn't heard my parents rustling throughout the house, so I still had some time to myself. I really didn't want to face them after last night. From that argument over dinner, to letting Jasper use his ability on them, I didn't want to look into their eyes and wonder what they saw me as now. Mom called me a ghost, and I guessed it made sense. I had become a void – empty, terrified, lost. Numb.

I hoped I could stop it today by forcing myself to _live_ through this nightmare, or at least when the vampire that killed Waylon was ended. My hands curled into fists at the idea, my heart skipping to a faster beat. Only rage and revenge and terror seemed to bring me back to life when I felt like I was beginning to drown in myself, at least when Jasper wasn't around.

I hoped I would be able to find my way back to myself when this was all said and done. When no vampire would be focal point of my life anymore.

I showered and changed into a pair of jeans, a gray tank top, a black and white Nike pullover, and Converse. I noticed my hair's rogue curls start taking form as it dried in the small bathroom mirror and debated on straightening it. It had never been a debate before. I used to be adamant on keeping it pin straight, making sure a strand wasn't out of place. I hated the frizz, the obnoxious way my hair would puff out if it wasn't managed, how my curls made me look like I was twelve, but… I didn't care today. It was another thing that took up too much of my time that I could spend on completing my goal.

I continued mulling over the three most significant things in my life into my coffee as I waited for Bella to pick me up for school. That was another issue I had to pile on my plate: my best friend with a certain… attraction to danger. I rubbed my eyes when frustration threatened to bubble out of me, and silenced an exasperated groan by chugging the rest of my coffee. I was pouring my second cup when my dad walked down the stairs. _Down_ the stairs…?

"I thought I heard you up," he said.

I narrowed my eyes. "And I thought you slept down here."

He actually froze in place next to the kitchen table. I regarded my father, in his plaid pajama pants and his ratty University of Washington T-shirt, idly wondering if it was his fault I was in this mess. If he didn't cheat on my mom, I would have never followed her to Forks. I would have never dealt with these vampires. I could have lived in blissful ignorance, focused on soccer, being happy – Hell, maybe Waylon would still be alive.

But I also would have left Bella to deal with this on her own, because she would have found out about them without me here, I was sure. We would have never been able to reconnect, and I realized she was the only _true_ friend I really had…

Especially when everyone else in my life seemed to betray me like it was a fucking sport.

"Blaire –" my dad started out, but it was too late. I was so stressed, so angry, so _hurt_ , and I needed someone to lash out at.

He was an ideal target.

"Save it," I snapped, turning to grab a travel thermos. "You might have Mom fooled, but I see through you."

Silence reigned over the kitchen. Tension crackled between us, energizing me in all the ways coffee couldn't. As red splotched over my dad's face – a telltale trait of untapped fury we both shared – I simply transferred my mug of coffee into the thermos.

My dad didn't release his anger. Instead he stifled it by running his fingers through his hair. "That's not what I'm trying to do," he said. "I know how much I ruined things –"

"Oh do you?" I asked, my own fury seeping into my veins. "So you know everything? You know how Mom's cried herself to sleep almost every night after everything happened? You know how much I _pretend_ that I'm okay and everything's fine?"

The air was thick with my rage, but I liked it. I _liked_ the look of horror on my dad's face. I liked how it made me feel like I finally had some control. I clung to it.

"You don't know _anything_ ," I seethed, because he didn't. There was so much more, and he would never know. "You can try and make me come back to Seattle – _try_ and make us a family again – but it'll never happen. I'm _done_."

I walked out of the kitchen, grabbing my backpack and my gym bag off the table. I slung both over my shoulders as I made my way to the front door.

"I know you are," my dad said hoarsely. "I know how hard this has been for you. I know how strong you've had to be, and I'm sorry you had to grow up so fast – but I'm _trying_. I'm trying so hard to fix this. _Please_ talk to me. Your mom feels like this family is barely hanging on by a thread as it is –"

" _I'm barely hanging on!_ " I screamed, my voice breaking as it rang through the empty kitchen. "Don't you get it? _I'm_ the one who's trying more than _any of you_ and I can't _handle this_ and none of you are doing anything but – but _suffocating_ me! I don't want your apologies, I don't want you or Mom suddenly trying to help me now, I want _space_! Just let me fucking _breathe_ –"

 _Knock_ , _knock_ , _knock_.

What the hell?

I turned to the door and pulled it open, ignoring my dad's broken plea to wait. My brows shot up when I saw Jasper on the other side. He was dressed in jeans, black boots, another V-neck T-shirt, and his black motorcycle jacket. How unfair, I thought, that he stayed up all night too, but looked like he just walked off of a photoshoot, except for the look on his face. He actually seemed… awkward? And relieved, at the same time, when he looked down at me.

"Bella tried texting you," he said quickly. "We're picking you up for school."

That was when I saw the Volvo actually roll to a stop in front of my house. I raised a brow at Jasper, and how he was here _before_ the car was. "Um –"

"Good morning, Mister Holcomb," Jasper suddenly said, dipping his head respectfully. I glanced back at my dad, who stepped into view. He was only looking at me… with a look I'd never seen on his face before. It looked like something beyond horror. Maybe I was leaving him in his own wreckage of the bomb I set off on him.

I hoped he was choking on the dust of it, just like I had been for _months_ since his and my mom's separation. I sent him another glare before pushing past Jasper to get out of the house. I let my backpack and gym bag slip from my shoulders and held them out as I stepped off the porch. Jasper took them from me within the same moment, saying nothing.

I only looked back at the house after Jasper let me into the backseat of the car, narrowing my eyes as my dad stood at the doorway, staring after me. Like he was the lost one. Like _he_ was the abandoned one.

Jasper got in on the other side. "Are you all right?" he asked, his words low and rushed.

"I'm fine," I muttered, turning to my thermos.

"Do –" Bella choked out from the passenger seat. "Do you want to stay –"

"Fuck that," I said.

Edward, wisely, didn't comment. He put the car in drive and pulled away from the house. Soft calm gently caressed me from Jasper's side of the car, not in a way to try and manipulate my mood, but… but to support me. I glanced at him, but he was looking out his window, which had been lowered slightly to bring in chilly morning air. I welcomed the coolness, and Jasper's quiet show of support, as it tempered the anger simmering under my skin. Just like last night, he didn't force the emotion, but he let me know it was there.

"What… What happened in there?" Bella asked, her quiet voice breaking the silence in the car.

"In my house?" I asked, my eyes cutting to Jasper. "I want to know how you got to my door before the car even parked in front of my driveway."

"I could sense the tension a block away," he said. "I was worried."

Oddly, I was touched. I heaved a sigh and looked out my window. "My parents want to move me back to Seattle," I said.

Was it my imagination, or did Jasper's shoulders tense as soon as the words slipped from my lips? But Bella was the one who reacted first. "What? When?" she demanded.

My throat tightened. "They said after the funeral. I don't know if that means a week from then, a couple of days, or what. They think I'm going through a nervous breakdown, with everything going on, since I can't tell them anything."

"Do you want to go back?"

I noticed the way Edward's eyes flicked up in the rearview mirror to look at Jasper after he asked the question, the interest that was there. I looked back down at the thermos settled in my lap, grimacing. "I… I can't. I have to end this. I don't want anyone else getting hurt because of me. Even though I can't do anything… I have to try, right?"

"End what?" Bella asked.

"You don't have to," Jasper told me. "I can watch over anyone you're worried about and finish what you started. You could go back home, focus on yourself –"

"How could I do that?" I whispered. The air felt too still after the question. "Waylon _died_ for this – for _me_. What kind of person would I be if I shrugged that off? How could I go back to the city and leave all of this behind – and pretend it never happened?"

"What are you –" Bella demanded.

"You'd be safe," Jasper countered. I frowned at him, at the sincerity I saw in his expression. The same dark, wriggling, uncomfortable sensation I felt at the Cullen's house wormed its way through my chest. Desperation. It made my eyes sting with a fresh wave of tears. "You could live your life again –"

"Why are you saying this?" I asked, my voice thick. "You know how important this is to me. Why –"

"Blaire, _what_ are you talking about?" Bella demanded. Her eyes were wide as she wrenched herself around in the passenger seat to look at me.

" _Vampires_ , Bells!" I exclaimed. "What the hell else is there to talk about these days? Those monsters killed my uncle. I have to do something about it!"

Her eyes stretched impossibly wider. "Are you _insane_?" she asked. "No, seriously, have you been checked _out_ –?"

"No, but don't worry, my parents are already on top of that," I snapped. She flinched. "Maybe I should see if they can book a double, since you _clearly_ need it if you think you can actually fu –"

"That's not what's happening," Edward said, the car jerking to a stop in its parking spot at the high school. I noticed he had the good sense to park further away from all the other cars before I reeled back on him.

"Get out of the car," I told him, my voice edging on an actual growl.

His brows shot up. "I beg your –"

Yeah, I was surprised too, but I held firm. He cut himself off as soon as he realized it too.

Jasper sighed. "Come on, Edward," he said. "Let the women talk."

I stared at Bella as the two boys (I realized with a start that Jasper said he was one hundred and _fifty_ years old last night, so maybe "boy" wasn't the right word to describe him) slid out of the car. We didn't break eye contact as their respective doors shut behind them.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I finally asked when we were alone.

"Tell you what?" Bella asked, her brows scrunching together in confusion.

"That you're…" I struggled to put the words together, even though they made _no sense_ in my mind, " _with_ him?"

"I…" Her mouth opened and closed like a hooked fish. Because she couldn't deny it. I tried to quell the betrayal stabbing at my heart, even as she spat out small words and tried to string them together to make a plausible explanation for why she was spending so much time with Edward that wasn't what she was doing, but I knew better. "Bee… I… Just… We…"

" _Why_ are you doing this?" I whispered.

Bella glanced uneasily at something over my head, no doubt worried about _them_ listening in, but I didn't care. I was more concerned about the line Bella was currently using as a tightrope between safety and danger, life and death…

"Because," she finally said, meekly, "I… It's… Different."

"Of course it is," I snapped, probably too harshly. "He's _not human_. You saw what he did to that van, imagine –"

"He wouldn't hurt me," Bella said. I didn't like how sure she seemed.

"Really?" I asked. "Because Rosalie Hale says different. _That_ was who I learned all of this from, by the way, instead of my best friend. Why didn't you _tell_ me –"

"When was I supposed to, Blaire?" Bella demanded. "You've been acting so… so –"

"Crazy?" I demanded.

"– Distant," she finished, frowning at me. "And I didn't know what was happening. Why didn't you tell _me_ when you learned about Waylon?"

"Because I thought I was keeping you _safe_ ," I hissed. "I didn't know that you actually knew anything –"

"And if I didn't know," Bella challenged, "would you have kept me in the dark?"

I gaped at her. "Of course," I said. "This is a fucking _nightmare_ , a grenade, and I've been trying to minimize the collateral damage this whole time. But then here _you_ are, treating this like a B-rated romcom –"

"Like you should talk," she muttered.

Horror washed through me. " _What_ –"

Her face was getting redder and redder by the second, but it wasn't from embarrassment or shame. "Don't try and act like you're doing anything differently," Bella said. "You've been hanging out with Jasper every free second you can get –"

"Because I'm being _hunted_!" I cried. Bella's eyes widened in horror. "Those vampires killed Waylon to get to _me_. Jasper has been protecting me, helping me try to kill them –"

"But you can't kill them –"

"I know! Why the fuck do you think I'm spending time with Jasper?"

Bella looked down at the center console beside her.

"We don't pretend to be anything other than what we are," I told her, "which is why I don't understand why you're trying – trying to – with _Edward_ –"

"Because it's _different_!" Bella exclaimed. "It's different for both of us. Neither of us have felt this way about anyone before. You don't have to understand it, but I thought you could at least support me –"

"I'm _not_ supporting this," I said. "If you think I'm going to cheer you on while you stick your head in a lion's mouth, you're naïve."

She huffed before shifting around in her seat, scrambling to unbuckle her seatbelt. "Fine," she muttered.

My brows rose. "Fine?" I echoed. "Fine as in…?"

"Fine as in you don't have to support it," she snapped before shoving herself out of the car.

My mouth dropped open. Was she fucking kidding me right now? I didn't move, rubbing my hands over my face as if that would erase the horrible, tangled, fucked up situation I found myself in. It happened to be the same one Bella, my klutzy and blissfully ignorant friend, threw herself in.

What was my life right now?

I hauled myself out of the car, surprised to find Jasper and Edward waiting a car length down the parking lot. Jasper had my backpack and gym bag in tow. Bella passed us, disdain clear on her face as she us, and Edward easily fell into step beside her. I cringed as I took my bags from Jasper.

"I can walk you to your locker again," Jasper offered, but I shook my head.

"No, I couldn't ask you to do that," I admitted. "I'm asking too much of you as it is."

I tried to walk past him, heading toward the girls' locker room, but Jasper shadowed my step. It forced me to look up at him. "You're not," he said.

Two simple words made my knees go weak. That, coupled with the concern I could feel pushing against me and the frown on his face, I was a goner. I shook my head anyway, tried to shake him off, and pulled my straps further up my shoulders. "I'll see you in history," I said.

"And after practice," he said. "I'll pick you up again."

I nodded. Riding home with Jasper was a much better alternative than dealing with my parents at the moment.

But as I trudged to the girls' locker room, obsessing over Jasper and his words and overwhelming capacity for generosity, I couldn't help but wonder if I was being just a naïve as Bella.

 **V**

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Like, I _really_ hate edits.

Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	32. FINISHED

Guys, this isn't funny. I have beta readers asking where my manuscripts are. They're getting upset.

I'm begging you. Help me.

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 **30\. FINISHED**

I hated the silent treatment.

And Bella Swan, my best friend of almost seven years, knew that entirely too well.

The bitch used it to her advantage.

The only person who could relate to what I was going through, the only person I happened to already be able to talk to about anything, was _not talking to me_.

It was infuriating.

I spent the rest of the school day pensive and brooding, glaring at my desk, at the wall, out the window, my anger eating me alive. All while Bella sat and talked to the friends we made at this school like nothing was wrong (while _everything_ was wrong) and I hated every second of it.

I think I hated _her_ , a little bit.

How could she do this? How could she think she was in the right? Why? _Why_ did Bella have to go and have her first crush on a vampire? Even when we were kids, she always had to do the other thing – the _different_ thing. While Bella and I loved playing together when we were younger, it had always taken so much effort for me to get her to run and play outside, to be bubbly and carefree like _normal_ kids were. Bella was never like that. She was serious, both wise beyond her years and still painfully naïve. She preferred living in her own world, her own thoughts, and I used to think that was because she had a tendency to be kind of… self-absorbed.

But an epiphany hit me in Spanish, while I spared a glance at her trying to pay attention to the lesson while entertaining Jessica's endless chatter. I'd said it to Jasper myself, back in Port Angeles.

 _Bella's always been an outlier._

I wondered how far out she truly was. Edward couldn't read her mind, after all. She was the first person he couldn't sense. Maybe she was… _other_ , just like the vampires, but in a different way, and she didn't even know it.

Was that why she said it was different with Edward? Because she felt some sort of kindred spirit with him? I could guess that she never felt that with her flighty mom, her emotionally constipated dad, her willfully clueless best friend…

I deflated, leaning on my desk to rest my chin on my folded arms. Bella glanced at me, probably sensing my gaze lingering on her too long, and I quickly looked down at the classroom floor.

There were so many ways I could analyze the situation, force it to bend in my favor because my logic was more sound than hers, but I couldn't deny that she seemed different since Edward came along. She seemed _alive_.

 _This could never go any further._

Was that because I pushed the possibility aside before ever giving myself the chance to explore it?

I didn't think I would ever know. My heart was so full and twisted with hate and grief, there wasn't room for anything else. Maybe I was so mad at Bella because she was actually living her life, and I felt like I was dying in mine.

The bell rang in a long drone overhead, forcing me from my reverie. God, it seemed like that was all I was doing lately. Sitting, contemplating, stewing. It was insanity. It was _Bella's thing_. Not mine. I grabbed my backpack and pushed my way out of the classroom while other students were still getting their things together.

"Blaire," Bella called. "Wait –"

I looked back at her from the doorway, smiling despite the turmoil roiling inside of me. "I'm going to go the field during lunch," I explained as our classmates began to flow straight for the door. "I'll see you in gym!"

I ducked past the throng of bodies, content with heading straight for the gym so I could leave the rest of the world behind, at least for a little while.

 **V**

The air was crisp and clear, telling of the spring finally gracing Forks. My lungs burned with labored breaths as my body worked itself back into warmth while I toed a soccer ball stolen from the gym supply closet along the lush green soccer field.

A small smile worked its way across my face ever since I started running through my drills. Triangles, rotating step-ons, sole rolls, and rounders all felt like second nature to me. I seemed to slip back into my own skin of true confidence, not the mask of bravado I strained to constantly keep up in front of vampires, my parents, and Bella. My body still knew what to do, knew to keep the ball within my scope of awareness as I dribbled up and down the field. I kicked the ball up over my head, watched it sail through the air, before I lurched out to bounce it off my knee and pass it to the next, back and forth. The repetition should have been tedious, but I found it damn-near cathartic. I'd missed this so much.

I stayed outside even after the bell rang to end my lunch period. I debated on skipping the rest of the day so I could stay on the field until practice began, but that would just make Jasper worry… right? It was probably best not to assume he would feel any level of concern about me, despite the words that were said last night. It didn't matter. _This could never go any further_.

But I still kicked the ball up into my waiting hands and made my way back to the school, just in case.

The drills helped beat the newly found fixation I had on Jasper into some form of submission, but I found as soon as I started hiking back up the hill from the soccer field to the gym, the rampant thoughts were back in force. I wished I could get those words out of my head, the way his eyes glowed as he said them, the way it felt to know he was waiting for me. But how long would he wait, exactly? Until this was all over? And then what?

It didn't matter. At least, that was what I tried to tell myself. _This could never go any further_. I didn't know why I was entertaining Jasper's presence in my mind so much. We were different. It made no sense. There wasn't anything going on between us –

Lie. A horrible lie. There had been something going on between us ever since I first saw him in the parking lot on my first day of school. There had been a moment I couldn't define that led into a downward spiral of barely concealed interest and possessiveness – because despite how much I tried to push him away, I always knew Jasper would come back to me.

 _This could never go any further_.

"I seriously don't know how she's getting away with it."

I paused in front of the gym supply closet, behind its open door, frowning at the nasally voice intruding on my thoughts. One that was unfortunately familiar.

"It's not even like she's really _that_ good," Lauren-freaking-Mallory went on. "I mean, I bet anyone would be if they had private instructions or whatever, and she scored a couple of easy goals. So what? Everyone's drooling over her like she invented the fucking sport."

I rolled my eyes and stuffed the ball into its open cubby in the closet. I could only guess who she was talking about.

"Yeah," another girl whose voice I didn't recognize responded to Lauren's venting. "Everyone acts like it's just her pulling the Spartans through the ranks, like they forgot it's a _team sport_ –"

"Exactly! And now she's just supposed to come back to practice today like she hasn't taken the longest break _ever_?" Lauren snapped, rage punctuating her words. Stabbing me with them. I needed to find a way to get away without her noticing. It sounded like they were getting closer to me. "Like, okay, I get that her uncle died or whatever – and I don't mean to be a bitch by saying this – but it wasn't like it was really _that surprising_ , you know?"

I froze.

"Lauren," the other girl said. "That's kind of –"

"But am I wrong?" Lauren- _fucking_ -Mallory demanded. Rage coursed through my veins, a righteous fury that didn't burn hot, but ice cold. "I mean, like, he was a fucking alcoholic. They slip up. I bet that's what happened and basically _let_ that animal attack him –"

I was going to _kill her_.

I surged out of the supply closet and slammed the door behind me so hard that it rattled on its hinges, scaring both girls. I didn't care about the other one – I only had eyes for Lauren-mother _fucking_ -Mallory. She was dressed in gym clothes, telling of what period she was currently in, and the shock making her face drain of all color would have been hilarious if it didn't make my ears roar with bloodlust.

"So you think he _let_ that animal kill him?" I snarled as I advanced on her. "Just like you _let_ me break your face?!"

She stumbled backwards as I swung out with a fist. The righteous fury within me had turned into an animal – one that howled with primal satisfaction as my knuckles collided into that girl's face. Pain burned through my hand, deliciously hot and covered in blood from the other girl's busted nose. She shrieked as she collapsed on the ground. Red tinted my vision as I descended upon her with another punch.

I lost myself to that rage. In the back of my mind, a (fleeting) rational part of me observed that it was about damn time.

I could barely see Lauren's face through my anger, but I noticed through the blur that it was swollen and bloody, smeared with tears and snot. I barely heard her screaming through the ringing in my own ears.

It felt like an eternity passed and mere seconds by the time someone latched their arms around me and hauled me off of her. I didn't realize I was screaming too until I realized my throat was raw as I cussed and spat at the gym teacher that tried to restrain me, at the school resource officer who needed to hold me back too. I saw Lauren across the dozens of bodies of students and teachers filling the space of the empty hallway, staring at me in terror.

"Don't you ever talk about him again!" I screeched at her. " _Ever_!"

I realized that I was crying, too.

It took the gym teacher, the school resource officer, _and_ the football coach to pull me away from Lauren. The time between the fight became a blur of wide staring eyes, whispers, orders from the members of Forks High's faculty to _calm down_ , until I was shoved into the administrative office. Silence fell on the office space as secretaries and teachers looked on in abject horror as the three men wrestled me into the conference room. I guessed it would be terrifying, to see how a girl could turn into a monster.

Monster. I was a monster now.

"Sit _down_ ," the officer tried to tell me, steering me to one of the first chairs at the long table. I kicked it over and shook his hands off my shoulders.

"Let me _go_ ," I growled, finally breaking free. I stumbled into the opposite wall of the room, breathing heavy, frantically forcing myself to relax, to _breathe_ , but it was all too much. Beating Lauren to a pulp did _nothing_ to ease the anger that had come to life inside of me, and it was making me panic. Monster. Monster. Monster. Every beat of my heart chanted the word.

Those vampires. They had won.

I was officially in pieces.

More tears clouded my vision and I let my legs buckle from underneath me. I slid down the wall, curling into myself on the ground. I needed to ground myself. I needed to pull myself together. The resource officer, who I realized was the only one left in the room, tried to sit with me and coax me out of myself, but I could barely hear him. He tried to ask what happened.

"She said he deserved to die," I uttered.

Anger roiled into me as I remembered her words. The resource officer tried to dig further, but I stopped talking. I was convinced that if I opened my mouth, I would start screaming. I squeezed my eyes shut as tight as I could and hoped it would be enough to push everyone and everything away from me. I wanted to be alone. I needed to resurface on my own, before I drowned in my emotions. The room spun with my rage and fear and sadness and I had no control. I had no control. I couldn't fucking _breathe_ –

"Blaire! Blaire!" My mom's voice rang through the room. I looked up, my eyes widening at my mom and dad surging into the room. My dad grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me up to my feet before I sunk into a chair. How long had I been sitting on the floor, lost in myself, for them to get here?

I was still spinning in my own chaos when the principal came in. My parents sat on either side of me, not touching me, not talking to me, as they listened to the head of Forks High. He gave my parents a gist of what happened. Apparently I beat Lauren-freaking-Mallory up so bad that first responders were called. Key phrases like "pressing charges" and "expulsion" spiked my panic, but not enough to actually make me take part in the conversation being had about me. Didn't they realize it didn't matter?

We drove home. The silence was thick and more uncomfortable than I'd ever experienced, and that was counting when my dad sat in the living room and watched my mom and I pack up the car to move to Forks. That seemed like such a long time ago. With everything falling apart even then, I was amazed it took me this long to catch up.

I stared at the green blurring past the car and wished those vampires would just finish the job already.

Things were still silent between my parents and I when we walked into Waylon's house. It was funny. This morning, I loathed the silent treatment. Now I welcomed it with open arms. I think It was because my actions today actually left them speechless. That made three of us. I had no words for them. No apologies, because I wasn't sorry, no concern for how this situation would play out for me, because I wasn't worried. I didn't care. Maybe they knew that too.

They let me go up to my room without a word.

When I opened the door and shut it behind me, I wasn't surprised to see Jasper standing at my open window, watching me. He leveled me with his golden gaze that burned bright in the afternoon sun, despite him standing in the shadows. Waiting for me.

"Please," I whispered.

He was across the room in the same second my legs started to buckle from underneath me again, his cold arms enveloping me. I was sitting on my bed, dropping back to lean against my headboard. I couldn't stop my head from cracking almost painfully against it in the wake of his speed, while Jasper settled across from me. He said nothing, forcing waves of calm into me tinged with slight repentance for the phantom hurt he caused. I stared back at him, accepting all of the emotions to fill me up since I felt so empty. I let myself find balance in the certainty of his eyes.

He stayed in my room after I went downstairs for dinner and came back up. He didn't leave until sometime in the night, after I fell asleep.

When I woke up the next morning, there was a bag of chocolate chip cookies on my desk. When I ate them, I didn't taste them.

 **V**

It was unusually sunny on the day of Waylon's funeral. I wondered if it was some kind of joke.

I sat in the front row of the service and stared directly at his casket. It was closed, of course. I barely heard the minister preside over him, promising everyone that my uncle had gone to a better place. Were the minister's words actually supposed to bring comfort to anyone here? Were they actually supposed to make people feel okay about death and the uncertainty of after?

My mom tried to hold my hand, tried to offer me more comfort. I pulled away from her. I didn't want comfort.

I wanted an end.

The minister promised that he was watching over each of us. If that was true, then I hoped my uncle was more worried about the other people in attendance today, and that he wasn't watching me right now. He would probably be so disappointed. He would probably wonder what happened to his lively, bold niece, and why she allowed herself to become so hollowed out. Maybe this was why he never told me what he knew.

He would probably regret that he couldn't protect me.

I didn't cry as he was lowered into the ground, but that didn't mean I wasn't grieving. It didn't mean a splintered piece of my heart didn't follow him into the dirt where it would remain with him always. It didn't mean I was over what happened.

My dad ushered me back to the car as soon as the ceremony ended, not even giving me a chance to talk to Bella or Charlie. Maybe he and Mom thought I would snap on them. I felt a little empathy for Jasper on the car ride home, wondering if this was what it was like for him in his family, since he was considered the weakest link too.

"When we get home, I want you to put a bag together," Dad said, speaking to me for the first time since yesterday morning. His voice wasn't unkind, but it wasn't familiar to me. It was curt. Too polite. "Fill it with essentials for the week. We're going back to Seattle on Monday. Mom's going to stay behind and pack the rest of the house, since her spring break starts next week."

I knew this would happen. I didn't say anything as he drove us back to the house and put the car in park. "Go ahead and get started," he said. "I'm going to head back and pick up your mom."

I slipped out of the car and trudged up to Waylon's front porch, smoothing out the wrinkles in my black dress as I fished for the right key to unlock the door. I didn't turn around as I shut it behind me.

I set the keys on the dining room table as I walked upstairs. I changed out of my dress and into leggings, a black tank top, and a red flannel shirt. I threw my hair back into a hasty braid and grabbed my backpack and a duffel bag out from my closet. I threw all of the books and binders out of my backpack and replaced it with clothes. I stuffed the duffel bag with much the same. Then I opened Jasper's phone and pulled up Alice's number, ready to hit the call button –

The window behind me shifted open. I spun around, my brows shooting up at Jasper as he swung his leg over the sill and stepped into my room, wearing jeans, boots, and a long-sleeved gray Henley. The rich yellow light of the setting sun shone on him, the bright beam of lighting up the bare skin of his neck and the side of his face and making it… shimmer like a diamond held to something bright. I had to squint when one facet of his cheek winked a little too brightly at me. What the hell?

"Alice saw you make the decision when you were on your way home from the funeral," he said. "Are you sure this is what you want?"

"Yes," I said. "I get it if you don't want to help me, but I'm leaving no matter what."

"I'm with you," Jasper said, and I tried to push aside the way those simple words settled within me, how the strengthened my theory that there was _something_ here, alive but stifled between us because I'd been so content to try and smother it out of existence. "But you know how this will end."

"Not pleasantly, right?" I asked, using his words from that night on the drive from Port Angeles. I grabbed my duffel bag and threw it out the window. I watched it fall to the ground with a soft _thud_ against the grass. I glanced up at him as I walked out of my room, noting the way he watched me. He didn't look angry, but he didn't seem humored either. Maybe grim. I supposed it was fitting.

I skipped down the stairs and pushed my way into Waylon's room, ignoring the hurt that twisted my heart as I passed his neatly made space. I had a feeling my mother was behind the sudden cleanliness of his room. I opened his closet, ignoring the flutter of my heart at the sight of the guns displayed in the small case underneath his hanging clothes. I reached for one of the handguns – a Glock-nineteen, I remembered him say – holstered, along with the two magazines settled next to it, and a box of corresponding bullets underneath it.

I raced back upstairs, clipping the holster in the waistband of my leggings, meeting Jasper's scrutinizing gaze as I shoved the magazines and extra bullets in my backpack. I zipped it shut, closing in the weaponry, more clothes, and two pictures. One was of me and my parents, and the other of the myself as a child on Waylon's shoulders.

"I know I said I wasn't looking for a happily-ever-after that night," I said. "I also know I didn't mean it then. I thought I would be able to end this and still come out unscathed. But now… I know better. This is still what I want."

Jasper stared at me, absolutely still, the analytical look back in his eyes as he regarded me. My shoulders dropped in slight disappointment. I thought we had ended this part of our strange relationship.

I huffed. "What?"

He finally moved, taking the backpack from me. "Just thinking about how quickly things have changed," he said before he slipped out the window.

I craned my neck out and looked down at him. He'd landed on his feet, of course, and looked up at me. The sun filtered into Waylon's back yard through the clouds, making Jasper glimmer more intensely. I had to squint at him. "For better or worse?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Maybe a bit of both," he admitted.

I rolled my eyes, then pushed myself out of the window. I let myself fall, knowing Jasper would catch me. I landed in his arms, my head jolting back at the force of it. I cringed at the dull pain in my neck and squinted a little harder past the brightness Jasper exuded. "So… instead of combusting in the sun, you… sparkle?"

Jasper chuckled. "Believe me, it wouldn't have been my first choice."

 **V**

* * *

I love writing longer-than-usual chapters to put off my actual responsibilities.

I'm going to work on edits now. After I take my dogs on a walk.


	33. INEVITABLE

Guess who just finished her edits?! And by just finished I mean I wrote the last chapter and submitted to betas?!

That's right! It's your girl Twitch!

Now I'm back on my bullshit. Enjoy this chapter, and thank you for waiting!

* * *

 **31\. INEVITABLE**

"You're _fools_ ," Rosalie spat by way of greeting as Jasper led me into the Cullens' living room. I pulled my backpack closer to my back, my eyes trained on the plush carpet after I caught Rosalie scowling at us from her seat on the couch.

"Lay off, Rose," Jasper said from behind me. "This doesn't even affect you."

"The hell it doesn't," she hissed. I tensed when I felt a cool breeze filter through the room. I glanced up. The rest of the Cullen family had entered the room as well: Carlisle (looking way too at ease in this situation), Esme (who seemed both concerned and empathetic), Alice (she was staring over my head – at Jasper?), and Emmett (who looked eager… which was weird). At least Edward wasn't with them. I didn't want Bella to know what exactly was going on yet. Not when I barely knew myself.

"It affects us all!" Rosalie went on. "Everyone in town has seen you together! Now that she's decided to run away from home, people will start asking questions. They'll come straight here!"

"Then we'll make them think we ran off together," Jasper said easily. "It's not as if these people aren't expecting it. Five foster teens under two young parents was bound to cause trouble sooner or later."

Wait, what? Did he just say we'd _run off together_? My ears were suddenly on fire.

"The point is we're not trying to cause any trouble!" Rosalie exclaimed. I jumped when Jasper was suddenly standing in front of me. What the – "We only have a few hours before this news gets out. They'll be coming after us with pitchforks soon enough! I can't _believe_ you could be so selfish –"

"I don't think we should expect anything so extreme from the citizens of Forks," Carlisle finally spoke up, his tone neutral and soft. It silenced the room immediately. When I looked at him, he sported a small humored smile. "They have no reason to assume anything of the family."

While the words were soothing, they didn't relax me, especially when I saw Rosalie around Jasper's tall frame, glowering at me.

"Until they leave," Rosalie pointed out.

Wait – _leave_? We'd actually be _leaving_?

"Then they would only assume them wayward teenagers in love," Carlisle said, his smile turning into a knowing smirk. My face throbbed with the blood rushing to my temples at how humored he seemed. "I think that's a much better alternative than the truth."

Yeah, it was. Supernatural monsters were _way_ worse than runaway teens.

"He's got a point, babe," Emmett spoke up. "This is a better alternative –"

"Of course you think this is a good idea." She rolled her eyes. "Tracking and fighting vampires is your ideal spring break."

Emmett was across the room in seconds, leaning over Rosalie's head and smirking down at her. "Come on," he challenged, "you know you've been getting bored playing human."

Playing human. Such simple words, yet it was a harsh reminder of how far out of my comfort zone I was. This was all a game to them – to all of them – while I was trying to make it through this _alive_. Maybe this wasn't a good idea –

"Come on!" Alice suddenly said. She was standing in front of Jasper now, leaning around him to meet my eyes. She took off my duffel bag hanging from his shoulder, and he surrendered it to her easily. "I'll help you get set up in your room."

"Because no one listens to me," Rosalie muttered.

I cringed. "I – I don't need a room –"

"It's not a big deal," Alice said, already halfway up the first set of stairs. "It's not like any of us sleep."

I… guessed that explained a few things.

Wait, oh my God, they didn't _sleep_? At all?

I followed her past Carlisle and Esme, the latter reaching out to brush her chilled fingertips along my shoulder. She smiled at me. "I'll make you something to eat," she said. "Any requests?"

Yeah, I wanted to know why they were being so nice to me, especially with Emmett's words still ringing in my ears. Playing human. Was this kindness just them taking care of their bait so they could get to the real entertainment of their endless, violent lives?

"She'll love your pasta!" Alice said over her shoulder. She walked the landing on the second floor. I frowned at Alice, wondering if she knew what I would have blurted out if she didn't interject. But she had a point. Pasta sounded really good right now. After the day I had, I could use all of the carbs. "Come on, Blaire."

I scaled the stairs, skipping every other step, and glanced back at Jasper once I reached the second floor. He still stood where I left him, tall and resolute, watching me. He nodded for me to keep going, to join Alice. Why wasn't he coming too?

I couldn't wait for him, as Alice already started walking up another staircase. I followed her.

"He has more to discuss with the family," Alice answered my unspoken question as soon as we reached the third floor. This space only had two doors, both closed. Alice chose the door on the left. "About you being here, and everything."

"Is it a mistake?" I asked. "I can leave. I – I'll make something work –"

"No, no," Alice said. "It's nothing bad. Just… things that should be discussed."

"What –"

" _Please_ don't push," she said quickly, making me deflate. I would have pushed even more, but the imploring look on her face stopped me short. "You'll know everything soon, we just… have to adjust."

"Adjust," I echoed.

Alice nodded so fast her head blurred. "For now," she said. "I promise it – It won't be much longer."

She opened the door to the room on the far left. It led into a room that was empty and dark – save for a futon hugging one of the walls and a TV mounted on the wall across from it. On the opposite wall from the doorway was a narrow floor-to-ceiling window that let in one shaft of glaring buttery yellow late afternoon sunlight. It was cold, a few degrees colder than the rest of the house, like it'd always been closed off and never used by the Cullens. "Anyway, we decided it would be best for you to have a space to yourself to relax and… adjust," she added sheepishly. "Since Jasper never really comes in here –"

"This is _Jasper's_ room?" I asked, trying to shut my mouth from gawking.

"It's more like a closet," Alice said.

"I – I can't use his room," I said, taking a step back into the hallway. "I just thought I'd crash on the couch or something."

"Do you really think Jazz would let you do that?" she asked. I tried not to bristle at the nickname she used. "Between us, I think he'd prefer it if you were as close to… If you were comfortable. With everything going on."

"So he can witness another one of my mental breakdowns?" I asked bitterly.

Alice smirked. "I think that was one of the first things I didn't see coming."

"You and me both," I muttered.

She stepped into the room and dropped my duffel bag on the futon. It was a silent push for me to take the room, whether I wanted it or not. Sighing, I followed her in. "I feel like I screwed everything up."

"Maybe," she conceded, making me frown at her. "Maybe not. Seeing the things I have – and haven't – you begin to believe the world runs on a little bit more inevitability than everyone thinks."

I dropped my backpack on the futon next to my duffel. "Inevitability, huh?" I asked. "Like everything is meant to happen?"

"Happen and end in the same way, one way or another." Alice winked at me. "Get settled in, I'll come back up when Esme finishes your meal."

"Thank you," I said as she walked out the door. "For… for everything."

When she closed the door, I knew I was by myself, but I knew I wasn't alone.

 **V**

Alice only flitted back to the room once to give me a handful of fluffy white towels, expensive salon-quality shampoo, makeup wipes, and toilet paper (which I took with only _major_ levels of embarrassment). She told me she and the rest of the Cullens were going out for a hunting trip, and wouldn't be back until late.

It left me alone to settle in Jasper's room.

It held only the essentials. His bathroom had nothing in it except a generic brand of combination body-and-hair wash. Most of his drawers built into the wall across the futon were empty, except a few that held neatly folded shirts and jeans. It felt wrong to use the empty drawers, so I decided to live out of my bags and keep them in his closet – which was lined with coats, jackets, I thought I spied a suit, framing a shoe rack filled with different designer boots and tennis shoes. Some of them didn't even look worn. I stowed my bag in the corner of his closet to the right, and shut the door. Just because I decided I would start questioning things more didn't mean I would nose through Jasper's things.

I took a boiling hot shower, using the steam to clear my head and relax my too-tense muscles. I changed back into the clothes I wore to the Cullen's house, letting my hair hang damp and loose around my shoulders. I could faintly detect the herby aromas of Italian cuisine Esme was cooking downstairs. When I finished changing, I ventured to meet her.

The rest of the house was perfectly quiet, since all of the Cullens were gone. Everything was still, peaceful. The TV played a rerun of House Hunters set on a low murmur, the sound of something sizzling on a skillet drawing my attention to the kitchen.

Esme stood at the stove, sautéing something that smelled like bacon and looked like crumbles of it when I stepped closer. She smiled at me as I sat down on the island across from her. "Did you have a good shower?" she asked.

"Yes," I said. "Thank you. This smells incredible. What are you making?"

" _Pasta carbonara_ ," she answered with an accented flourish, making me smile. "Let's hope it tastes just as good. I'm trying a new recipe."

I watched her toss the pasta, bacon crumbles (which I realized was prosciutto), and peas into a creamy sauce. My mouth was watering as she plated it and set it in front of me. "Thank you," I said again.

"There's no need to thank us, Blaire," she said. "We're happy to help you. We _want_ to. What you're going through… It's not easy."

I shrugged and tried to do my best to not absolutely _inhale_ the pasta. It was so good. "It'll be figured out soon," I said after swallowing. "I appreciate you guys helping me, and Jasper."

"I'm sure he appreciates you just as much," Esme said. "I don't think he's ever had someone have such faith in him."

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Our lifestyle is difficult for any vampire," she said. "Even more so when you can't remember what it was like to be human at all. I think Jasper struggles so much with it because he was born in a world where he had to forget his humanity and become the monster we fear in ourselves to survive. He tries so hard, but I imagine it gets frustrating when his siblings have to watch his every move."

I set down my fork, slowly losing my appetite. "I don't think I have as much faith in him as you think."

"But you haven't turned him away," Esme said. "It's natural to be wary of him, so many of our own kind fear him – but you keep letting him come back. To _try_. Having someone like you in his life is all I can ask for."

Other vampires _feared_ him? I could see it – I _had_ seen it that day in the parking lot at school – but for his own kind…?

"Maybe it's something a little more solid than faith," I said. "Maybe I'm beginning to learn how to trust him."

She hummed, spooning more pasta onto my plate. "Trust, then," she said. "I think I like that better."

I kept eating, glancing over at the TV with every other bite while Esme cleaned. When the kitchen was clear, she began pulling things out from the fridge and cupboards. I didn't know what she was doing until a bag of chocolate chips entered the mix. My brows shot up.

"A certain son of mine told me you were a fan of my cookies," she said, like she was letting me in on some sort of secret. "You know, this was the first recipe I learned when I started baking. Do you want to learn? It's very easy."

I was already slipping off my chair. "Sure," I said. "I'm not as good in the kitchen as Bella, though."

"Don't worry," she said, setting the oven to preheat. "I'll make sure we get through this without any fires."

 **V**

* * *

It's filler, but also not?


	34. PERFECT STORM

So I finally finished my edits! The beta readers and ecstatic.

I also started a new project that I'm vvv excited about! But I decided I needed a slight break to enjoy our favorite Jasper/OC fanfiction.

* * *

 **32\. PERFECT STORM**

I ate my bodyweight in cookies. I got a stomachache shortly after, but it was worth it. It definitely didn't stop me from eating more.

I helped Esme clean up the mess we made from baking, and we watched more House Hunters reruns while she folded laundry. As the sun sunk lower in the sky, I could tell she was getting more and more restless. She seemed to move slower in folding towels and clothes, and then double-checked her creases. Her eyes flicked up to the windows behind the living room, to the forest beyond.

It reminded me that this home belonged to creatures far wilder than they appeared. That I baked cookies with someone who was capable of more savagery in a single hunting trip than I ever would be in my life. They weren't monsters – at least, not the Cullens – but they still had needs that the human world couldn't satisfy. "Shouldn't you be out there with them too?" I asked.

She smiled kindly. "I'll go out later tonight," she said. "I wanted to make sure you were settled in."

They weren't human, but they were still capable of offering some human comforts. I appreciated the sentiment more than she could know. "I'm okay," I told her, "really. You should go. Jasper told me that you're not as… full… when you hunt animals. Like you get thirsty faster."

She glanced out the window again, eagerness getting the best of her. It made up my mind. "Would you mind?" she murmured.

"Nope," I said. "I'll stay in Jasper's room. Go, have… fun, I guess. I think while you guys go do your vampire things, I'm going to do my human thing and sleep."

She laughed. "Yes, go rest," she said as she walked around the couch, toward the back door. "You'll be safe here. We'll return later tonight. We bought all of the food for you, so please help yourself to it. If you need anything, use Jasper's phone to text Alice. Our home is yours."

Maybe I didn't understand how normal people assumed Esme could be old enough to be the adoptive mother of a bunch of teenagers, but I understood how the rest of the coven looked up to her like a mother. "I will," I assured her. "Thank you."

"Of course," she said. "Goodnight, Blaire."

She was gone in a blur, and I was alone in the suddenly too-still house.

I found the Cullens' movie collection shortly after. I picked out a few, making a pile of options before taking the rest of the cookies and retreating upstairs. I didn't bother turning on any lights in Jasper's room, content to simply exist under the harsh glow of the TV swaddled by a padded comforter I found in a linen closet.

It was nice, existing in his tiny room. I felt like I was hidden from the rest of the world. Safe. I knew nothing and no one could touch me here. No wild vampires could find me, my parents couldn't take me back to Seattle, and Lauren-fucking-Mallory was somewhere out there with two black eyes, a broken nose, and a swollen face.

I smirked at the last one.

I didn't pay attention to the movie playing across the screen, letting my mind wander into warm and fuzzy oblivion. The relief of being able to do so was like a drug. I relished in letting myself go numb with it, almost like sleeping but not quite. I tried to take in every moment of it, savor my current existence, because I felt like it wouldn't stay like this for longer than the few hours the Cullens' hunting trip provided.

Despite my stomach turning, I couldn't help but reach out and grab for a cookie. They were piled on a white plate on the cushion beside me, next to Waylon's gun. Just in case.

My parents were probably freaking out by now. I could picture them running around the house, my mom frantically calling Charlie, trying to figure out where I was. Bella would figure it out, she was smart like that. I could see her too; sitting in the chaos my disappearance was going to create, knowing everything, unable to say a word. She wouldn't give my secret away, but she'd be worried. I hoped I could see her soon – before I potentially left Forks entirely.

It was a strange idea, one that was slowly sprouting to life in my mind. I could see it – I could picture myself on the back of a motorcycle, riding into the unknown, leaving all of my original plans behind. It was scary, how easily I'd been derailed from all of my goals and aspirations…

My chest constricted around my heart. Had it really been so easy?

I pulled the comforter closer around me and stared at the TV screen, hoping I could get sucked into mindless oblivion before the thoughts of real life could come back to haunt me.

 **V**

I woke up the next morning to the smell of coffee and freshly baked muffins.

And to the sight of a living room full of vampires.

Alice flipped through magazines on the couch, Jasper leaned on the island while Esme filled a mug with steaming black liquid across from him. Carlisle was beside her, one of his hands on her waist, kissing the side of her head. It made her smile.

Jasper noticed me first, his eyes bright yellow. In fact, all of their eyes were the color of butter, glinting in the sparse sunlight filtering in through the windows of the house. "Good morning," he greeted me.

"Hey, Blaire!" Alice chirped from the couch.

Esme greeted me by setting a blueberry muffin on a plate on the island next to the mug, followed by a soft, "good morning." Carlisle smiled warmly at me.

"Good morning," I told them all, taking up my new position at the island like I did yesterday. I was acutely aware of how close Jasper leaned next to me. It wasn't close enough to accidentally touch me, but he wasn't far enough away that I couldn't pretend he wasn't next to me. I took the coffee in my hands, relishing in the warmth seeping into my palms. "Where are Emmett and Rosalie?"

"Still hunting," Jasper answered. "They wanted to take more time."

"Bella's coming over today," Alice explained.

My brows shot up. "Really?"

She grinned at me from the couch. "Yes! We thought it would be the perfect time to finally meet the two girls who have taken our brothers' –"

"Blaire," Carlisle suddenly said, startling me. "Esme and I are going to run to the store for a few things. Is there anything that you would like while we're out?"

"Oh," I started, then quickly shook my head in the negative and the regain my bearings at the abrupt shift in conversation. "No, I'm fine, but thank you for asking."

The patriarch of the coven nodded. "We won't be long," he said before turning to leave the space. He glanced at Alice. "Behave."

Alice rolled her eyes.

Conversation stalled until we heard the front door close.

"Have you checked the weather, Alice?" Jasper asked. I took a slow sip of my coffee, pretending I didn't want to know how Alice could have finished her sentence.

She cut him a sly look. "Same as before. It's the perfect storm."

"Storm?" I frowned, glancing back at Jasper, fully looking at him for the first time since I woke up this morning. He had a small smile on his face – one that I'd called my favorite (before vampires were real, of course… because of course that changed everything… because _nothing could go any further_ ) – and didn't check his enthusiasm fast enough. I felt it flutter in my chest, happy and hopeful. It made me smile back. "Why do you need to know about the weather?"

"You said you wanted to watch me play baseball, right?" he asked.

My brows shot up. "Really?" I asked. "But… in the rain –?"

"It won't rain in the clearing," Alice said, blinking out of focus for a moment. Then she smiled at me. "Promise."

I still didn't know how a storm would play into it, but I was interested. Baseball was a normal, grounding thing. And how could I resist it if Jasper was playing –

Because I needed to learn how vampires moved and acted. Not for any other reason.

 **V**

I was a bundle of nerves when Alice started counting down the _minutes_ to Bella's arrival. I just saw her _yesterday_ , but it suddenly somehow felt like years since then.

Emmett and Rosalie came back to the house a few hours earlier after Carlisle and Esme's errands. Rosalie retreated upstairs and left the Emmett to sulk around the first level of the house. Everyone could tell they were in the middle of some kind of disagreement. When he challenged me to a round of _FIFA07_ ten minutes after walking through the back door, I accepted.

The score of the game mocked me: forty-six to zero. I was almost relieved when Alice sprang up from her seat on the couch near us. "She's here!" she exclaimed. I glanced away from the screen and out one of the open windows near the front door. I heard the rumbling of Bella's truck before I saw it pull up in front of the house.

"I forfeit," I told Emmett, abandoning my controller. "Just this once, though. Next time I'll win."

Emmett scoffed. "We'll see about that," he said, turning off the system.

Carlisle and Esme were suddenly downstairs, appearing in front of the piano in a blur. Esme leaned on Carlisle's shoulder in excitement, squeezing his arm. "Are you ready?" she asked all of us. I couldn't help but smirk at her enthusiasm. She was the perpetual hostess, always looking for a reason to gather and entertain. It seemed to spread to Alice, too, who was barking orders at Emmett to at least _try_ and get Rosalie to come downstairs.

I glanced back at Jasper, frowning when I noticed he was still seated in the armchair, staring pensively at the ground. He was the only one immobile in the sudden flurry of activity. I stepped to him. "Are you okay?" I asked.

He nodded shortly. "Fine," he said. It was a lie, I realized quickly. I cocked my head to the side, surprised I could even recognize it. What was wrong? Slowly, so painfully slowly, I reached out to one of his hands that rested on the armrest. Even slower, I traced the tips of my fingers along his cool skin.

I felt it in a sudden, small charge. There was concern, a tinge of fear, frustration –

Jasper looked up at me, the intensity of his eyes sweeping me up from under my feet. My breath caught. "Sorry," he said, quietly.

I shook my head. "Don't be," I said. "Why are you worried? Is it about Bella…? If it is, you shouldn't be. She's way more… adjusted to all of this than I am."

I was envious of her for being that way. Even though we found out the truth about the Cullens at the same time, I felt like she was handling it way better than I ever could. Jasper looked away, the perfect image of agony. "It's not that," he said.

Anxiety blipped through my fingertips, and I understood. It was the blood. This house, away from humans, was supposed to be his reprieve from the struggle he faced more than anyone else in his coven.

"Hey," I said, kneeling next to him. His gaze cut back to mine, morose and curious. "You're going to be fine. I… I trust you."

We stared at each other for an unfathomable moment. As that calculating look overtook his expression, I could tell he was searching for the lie in what I said. I was too. But when I thought of everything we'd been through, and everything he had done, how could I not trust him? How could I even _consider_ leaving Forks on the back of any motorcycle but his?

A flutter of… _something_ passed between us. It was fleeting, distant, but I knew it had happened.

 _This could never go any further._

But I wanted –

"Blaire!"

I stood up and spun around, forcing the intense, complicated emotions roiling within me down, so I could grin at my best friend.

Bella ignored everyone else in the room to hug me, and I accepted it with gusto. I enjoyed the closeness, her warmth, the very normal scent of her shampoo when her hair tickled my nose, and clung to it tight. I tried to ignore that we weren't normally very physical friends, and that this hug translated her worry more than words could ever say. I squeezed her close to offer some comfort in return, but I knew it would be fleeting.

"I'm so glad you're okay," she whispered.

But I wasn't okay. I was so far from it, I didn't know if I ever could be again. I finally pulled away from her, plastering a fake smile on my face so she wouldn't worry. So I could put off the truth just a little while longer.

"What happened?" she demanded.

"I – I didn't have another choice," I said. "My dad wanted me to pack a bag. He wanted to take me back to Seattle right after the funeral, and I just can't – I can't leave this –"

Bella nodded solemnly. "I held them off," she said, proving the suspicions I had last night. "Your dad suspected Jasper, but I said you guys only talked because Edward and I were…"

The words shriveled up and died in her throat when she glanced around us. I was suddenly aware of the audience we had, too.

Esme and Carlisle watched us fondly, Alice was grinning, Edward had the amazing talent to look both endeared and worried –

Jasper still sat in his chair, watching us. When our eyes met, the corner of his mouth lifted. I grinned back at him before turning to Bella again.

"Thank you," I said. "I owe you. We can talk more about it later."

She nodded gratefully, the attention clearly getting the best of her. As she looked around the room again, at the vampires hovering around us, her attention landed on the piano.

 **V**

* * *

*sighs*

I know it's probably another filler, trust me I wanted to write the baseball scene too, but Blaire's emotions right now are so complicated I feel like I need a little more time to let her breathe and sort out her issues. Plus I love any opportunity to flesh out the Jasper romance-plot, because that's why we're here.

I always knew Blaire was going to end up going through this transformation, starting as a cocky ray of sunshine to becoming a broody Judy, but I didn't expect it to hit me this hard. Bee's got me in my feels.

Next scene WILL be the baseball game.


	35. ENDGAME

Finally! We have another update!

Sorry for the delay, I went on vacation, got really sick after coming back from vacation, moved into a new house, and got sick again!

* * *

 **33\. ENDGAME**

Edward wanted the Jeep to drive Bella most of the way to the clearing where the Cullens would play baseball, which meant I had to rely on Jasper carrying me to the clearing.

I tried to focus on the scenery that whipped past us, the sky darkening overhead, or the way he charged through the mist enveloping the ground. His coven had sprinted far ahead of us, making me think he was moving slower for my sake. I wouldn't say it out loud, but I appreciated it – especially when my stomach constantly flipped as it was, like I was on a dilapidated fairground rollercoaster.

I regretted all of those cookies so much more now.

The ride finally ended as soon as we reached the clearing Jasper and the rest of the Cullens called their private baseball field, except it was more than a clearing. It was more like a massive valley framed by mountains and forest, easily two to three times the size of a major league baseball field. The mist Jasper ran through began to creep across the brown grass. Overhead, the sky darkened with the oncoming storm Alice had predicted.

I slipped off of Jasper's back, my shaking legs buckling –

Until I was jerked upright by my wrist, carefully enclosed in Jasper's hand. "Thanks," I said.

He nodded once, his eyes on the the expanse of the field, watching Alice and Carlisle almost on the other side of it, throwing a ball so fast and hard, it was a blur through the air. Jasper didn't let go of my wrist, his fingers slowly drifting across my palm, clearly distracted. His touch was feather-light, tickling my skin with the sensation and prickles of excitement.

"You should go out there," I told him, jerking my chin to his best friend and father, for all intense and purposes. "Warm up or something."

He finally looked at me, a slight smile tugging the corners of his mouth. I really did like it when he smiled, especially now that I knew it meant he was truly the freest to allow himself contentment. "You're getting good at that," he said.

I frowned at him. "Good at what?"

"Reading me," he answered. "I wasn't expecting it."

"Oh." I didn't know what to say to that. What _could_ I say? It made sense, didn't it? We were spending a lot of time together, of course we would acclimate to each other. It wasn't hard – his emotions were right there! But still, it had to feel like some kind of invasion of privacy for him. I pulled my hand out of his. "Sorry, I'll stop –"

"Don't," he said. "I like it."

I really, _really_ hoped my face wasn't turning red. I cleared my throat, tried to pull myself out from the haze I always found myself in when he seemed so intent on me. "Well, I can tell you're eager to get started," I said, looking at literally any other part of the field so I could avoid his eyes, "so you should go out there."

"Bella will be here any minute now," Jasper assured me. Then he perked up, looking at something over my head. I glanced up in time to see him smirk. "I think they're here now."

I turned as Bella cringed her way out from the low hanging branches of a tree, Edward looming just behind her. The sight of them together sent discomfort through me, imagining his very presence near her as a detriment to her life, the way vampires had been to mine.

His eyes flicked up to mine in that instant, brows drawn together in concern.

A breeze ruffled my hair, and Esme was suddenly walking out in front of Jasper and I. Emmett flanked her only a second later with another breeze. "Was that you we heard, Edward?" Esme asked.

"It sounded like a bear choking," Emmett added.

Bella offered Esme an awkward smile. "That was him."

"Bella was being unintentionally funny," Edward said.

"It's time!" Alice suddenly exclaimed; her voice close to my ears. I startled and spun around, surprised that she'd closed the distance of the field between us in mere seconds.

 _BOOM!_

I shrunk back at the thunder as it cracked overhead, bumping into Jasper's side. I tensed when I felt his hand on my shoulder for only a second, before he pulled away. I bundled my jacket closer around me.

"Eerie, isn't it?" Emmett had asked Bella, who seemed to share a similar reaction to mine.

"Let's go!" Alice said, darting past us to grab at Emmett's arm. The two were gone in a blur, but I kept my eyes firmly on Bella and Edward beside her.

"Are you ready for some ball?" Edward asked her.

Bella raised a fist and shook it. "Go team!" she said, miming the perfect fan.

He chuckled and reached out to muss her hair with an easy sort of familiarity I didn't approve of. Edward knew it too, because he sent me a quick look before racing after Emmett and Alice.

"Relax," Jasper said, his voice right next to my ear. I stiffened. "Edward has much more self-control than I do."

I frowned, but turned to face him, and didn't shrink back when I realized his face was only inches from mine. "Go out there already," I said, "or I'll be forced to root for the other team."

"Well we can't have that," he said with an amused smile. Then he was gone.

"Shall we go down?" Esme asked, surprising me. I almost forgot she was still standing with us. I glanced back at Bella, who was still staring off in the direction Edward had run, her mouth hanging open.

"Wow, Bell," I said. "You should close that before you let flies in."

She quickly shut her mouth, face reddening to the point of near-tomato, before jogging to Esme. "You're not playing with them?" Bella asked her.

"No," she explained, "I prefer to referee. I like keeping them honest."

I snorted, following after the two as they made their way to the field. "Do they like to cheat, then?" Bella asked.

"Oh yes," Esme said. "You should hear the arguments they get into! Actually, I hope you don't, you would think they were raised by a pack of wolves."

Bella and I laughed. "You sound like my mom," Bella said.

"Well, I do think of them as my children in most ways," Esme said. "I never could get over my mothering instincts. Did Edward or Jasper tell you two I had lost a child?"

"Um, no," I said, shocked by the easy way she said it. Bella quickly shook her head.

"Yes, my first and only baby. He died just a few days after he was born, the poor tiny thing." She sighed. "It broke my heart. That's why I jumped off the cliff."

I practically choked on my own air. _What_?

"Edward just said you f – fell," Bella stammered. Did that mean she knew more about the Cullens' backstories than me? I'd never asked, I'd never really wanted to know, or cared enough about them to ask.

I'd never even asked Jasper about his life before… before all of this. He said he'd lived for one hundred and fifty _years_ , and all I knew of it was that Alice had been there for a fraction of it. I didn't even know him, and I somehow thought it was okay to leave _Washington_ with him? What was wrong with me?

"That's why I'm so happy that he's found you dear," Esme told Bella, obviously moving on from the bombshell neither of us were prepared to react properly to, if there even _was_ a proper way. "He's been the odd man out for far too long; it's hurt me to see him alone."

"You don't mind, then?" Bella asked, quietly. "That I'm… all wrong for him?"

Esme pursed her lips, thoughtful. "No. You're what he wants. It will work out, somehow," she said, giving me a short glance. Like she was talking to both of us then. I didn't like it.

Thunder pealed out and echoed around the mountains, making me jump again.

Esme stopped at the edge of the Cullens' makeshift baseball field. The family split into teams: Edward in left field, Carlisle at shortstop, and Alice in front of them, ball in hand. She was the pitcher. Emmett stood several yards across from her, swinging an aluminum bat. Jasper was a few feet behind him, and dropped to a crouch when Emmett poised himself for the first swing.

"All right!" Esme called. "Batter up!"

Alice stood stock still for a beat. I wondered if she would move at all. Then she hauled her arm back and hurled the ball forward.

 _SMACK!_

Jasper straightened up and tossed the ball back to Alice, at a more human pace, so I could see it zip through the air and land in her waiting hands.

"Was that a strike?" Bella whispered to me.

"I…" I couldn't even tell. I hadn't seen the ball move through the air.

"If they don't hit it, it's a strike," Esme said.

Alice threw the ball again.

 _CRASH!_

My ears rang with the force that Emmett used to hit the ball. The collision made a sound I never experienced before, and it was so intense it set my teeth on edge. It echoed through the valley. But I could only stare, transfixed, as the bleary shape of what _might_ have been a baseball, shot into the woods.

"Home run," Bella said.

"Wait," Esme said, one hand raised, as Emmett tore around the bases with Carlisle trailing just behind – both blurs just like the baseball.

"Out!" Esme cried, just as Edward bounded out from the forest. He had the ball in his hand, smiling widely.

"Emmett hits the hardest," Esme said, "but Edward hits the hardest."

"How is this even possible?" I asked. "How can Emmett hit the ball without it exploding – or bending the bat?"

"Emmett and I designed them both," Jasper called out to me. I blinked. "They're made a little more… durable than normal."

I watched in amazement as they played on. Their game moved so much faster than a normal ball game. Jasper was apparently the catcher when Alice pitched, but played with Emmett and Rosalie against Alice, Edward, and Carlisle. When he came up to bat, he struck a ground ball in Carlisle's direction. Carlisle scooped it up with ease and charged Jasper to first base –

 _CRASH!_

They slammed into each other. Against all judgement, I took a step forward to them, but paused when they rightened themselves and Jasper seemed completely fine, aside from the dirt stain on the side of his shirt and sweatpants.

"Safe!" Esme cried.

The first inning ended with Jasper's team in the lead, and Edward catching the third out. He dashed up to us, grinning and excited. "What do you think?" he asked, but I knew it was mainly directed to Bella.

"One thing's for sure, I'll never be able to sit through dull old major league baseball again," she said dryly.

He chuckled. "And it sounds like you did so much of that before."

I folded my arms across my chest and pulled my jacket closer around me, again, wishing I wasn't such a third wheel. I saw Jasper across the clearing, switching to the outfield while Rosalie acted as shortstop and Emmett became the pitcher.

"I am a little disappointed," Bella admitted.

"Why?"

"Well, it would be nice if I could find just one thing you didn't do better than everyone else on the planet."

Ugh, gag me. How could Bella even _flirt_ with him? How did their relationship even _work_? I'd come to the realization that my best friend was an outlier among everyone else – everyone like _us_ – but it was still a struggle to wrap my head around the possibility of her having some kind of boyfriend that was a completely different _being_ than her.

Edward glanced at me, knowingly, before smiling at Bella. "I'm up," he told her, before heading to home plate.

Bella watched him go, wistfully, and I couldn't take it anymore. "What are you trying to do?" I asked her.

She startled, then cringed when she looked at me. "I… I don't know," she admitted. "We just... know that we're important to each other. We're trying to see how things... play out?"

My stomach roiled. "It's like you don't even know how dangerous that is."

"He won't hurt me," Bella said. Her confidence was disturbing.

"Maybe not, but his world will," I said. "You should leave while you still can."

"And what about you?" Bella asked. "Why don't you leave? Edward told me that if you give Jasper the word, he'd take care of everything and let you live your life. Why don't you tell him?"

I shook my head. "Because I'm not going to let someone else solve my problems. Our situations aren't the same, Bee. I'm trying to fix my problems, you're only making them."

Esme made her way back to us after talking to Carlisle across the clearing, making both of us lapse into silence. The second inning started up, but I could barely focus on it. I was too focused on noticing Bella's every reaction to Edward while he played, and how uncomfortable it made me. We had known the Cullens almost the same amount of time, had gone through the same experiences –

"Don't you even _care_ about what happened to Waylon?" I demanded, just after thunder cracked again. Bella jumped. "Shouldn't he be enough of a reason as to why we shouldn't be fucking with them?"

Bella went pale. "Bee –"

Then Edward was behind Bella, his hands resting lightly on her shoulders, pulling her close to him. Was he seriously trying to _shield_ her from me –

"Alice?" Esme called, sounding panicked.

"I – I didn't see," Alice uttered. "I couldn't tell."

I whipped around to look out at the field, but my vision was filled with the forms of the Cullens as they swarmed around us. "What is it, Alice?" Carlisle asked. He sounded as calm as ever, but his tone was hard. He would be answered.

I looked for Jasper through the crowd, heart racing. Where was he? What couldn't Alice see? What was happening? Where was he –

A chilled weight draped over my shoulders and Jasper gently drew me into his side under his arm. I let him.

"They were traveling much quicker than I thought. I can see I had the perspective wrong before," Alice explained.

"What changed?" Jasper asked, no longer playful. I could feel slight tingles of anxiety trying to work their way into me at our close proximity, and that same stomach-dropping freefall feeling of desperation.

I looked up at him, at the stoic expression on his face. A mask. "Jasper –"

"They heard us playing," Alice answered him, cutting me off. I tensed. They? "And it changed their path."

I felt eyes on me, but didn't look to meet any of them. Jasper's fingers curled into my shoulder. "Blaire –"

"How soon?" Carlisle asked.

"Less than five minutes," Edward said, scowling. "They're running. They want to play."

They?

"Can you make it?" Carlisle asked, turning to Jasper. When he did, our eyes met. I saw the spark of fear in them.

 _They_.

Loud clattering echoed through my ears. I realized it was coming from my teeth. I was trembling from adrenaline, shaking so hard my teeth were chattering.

"No, not carrying. The last thing we need is for them to catch the scent and start hunting," Edward said.

 _Start hunting…_

"Blaire." Jasper turned me until I was looking into his eyes. I gripped his arms, trying to ground myself. I could feel him trying to push thick waves of calm into me, but I didn't want them. I shook my head. "Blaire, I need you to focus on me –"

How could I focus on anything? _They_ were coming! But I tried to level my breaths, I tried to calm my racing heart, but the terror was too much. They were _coming_.

"How many?" Emmett asked in the distance.

"Three," Alice answered.

" _Three_?" Emmett echoed incredulously. "Let them come."

"Let's just continue the game," Carlisle finally said. "Alice said they were simply curious."

I blinked, uncomprehending. For the life of me, I couldn't understand the words that were being put together. I felt like I was caught in a wind tunnel with the blood roaring through my ears, making me unable to concentrate on anything else beyond the fear wracking its way through me –

"Blaire," Jasper said, his voice and a spear of intensity cutting through me. I tried to focus on him. "I swear to you you're going to be okay."

"I trust you," I whispered.

He nodded, his expression softening.

"You catch, Esme," Edward said. "I'll call it now."

"Like hell," Jasper said, rising to his full height, inches taller than Edward. "If there's going to be a fight, I should be in the middle of it."

A fight?

"And if there's blood drawn, _I_ should be," Edward returned. "I have my own to protect, too."

Bella. Bella was still here, too. She stood just behind Edward, twisting her fingers together in anxiety as everything unfolded around her. She still didn't have to be involved in any of this, just because I knew how dangerous this whole world was didn't mean she needed to –

"Let Edward call," I choked out, surprising them both. Jasper's brows furrowed – "Just stay close."

He frowned at me, about to argue –

"We don't have time," Edward pressed.

I nodded quickly, sucking in a sharp breath. I couldn't panic now. I made a promise the day after Waylon died to watch over our family, to be just as fierce as him, to see his case through to the end. I would do the same. I _had_ to.

Jasper glared at Edward as a slight inhuman snarl seemed to emanate from the back of his throat. It sent uncomfortable chills through me. "You watch her," he said.

I wanted him to watch Bella closer.

"I will," Edward promised. I knew he meant it for both of us.

Jasper sent me an unreadable look before he finally rejoined the others in the clearing, passing over the space where Bella and I stood moments ago. Alice and Esme stood there now. Had we been moved during the commotion…?

"Take your hair down," Edward told Bella, then to me, "Pull your hood over your head."

We both reacted without question. "The others are coming now," Bella said as she fluffed out her hair around her shoulders and I zipped up my jacket as far as it would go. My hood didn't feel secure at all.

"Yes," Edward answered. "Stay very still, keep quiet, and don't move from my side, please." He turned to fuss with her hair as well, maybe to cover up her scent I guessed –

"That won't help," Alice said. "I could smell her across the field."

"I know," Edward said tersely.

I frowned. "What does that mean –"

"Bella's scent is… different," Edward told me quickly. "It's stronger than many have encountered before, better –"

" _Better_?" I echoed. "So you, like, _crave_ it more than others?"

When he didn't say anything, my stress spiked. "Oh hell no –"

"What did Esme ask you?" Bella asked, desperately trying to change the subject.

Edward frowned at her. "Whether they were thirsty," he admitted.

The Cullens played on, but it was all for show. They barely hit the ball, or hit it into someone's ready hands. Jasper stood infield, immobile. He didn't reach for a single ball that wasn't hit in his immediate area.

"I'm sorry, to both of you," Edward suddenly said. "It was stupid, irresponsible, to expose you like this. I'm so sorry –"

The field went silent.

Edward took half a step to angle himself between us and the forest beyond. I grabbed Bella's arm and yanked her behind me, my entire body dissolving into a trembling mess as my fingers dug into her arm. I kept my eyes trained on the trees, waiting for what they would reveal.

 **V**

* * *

Fun fact for you: I'm actually reading this book as I write this fanfiction so I can stay mostly on track with the story's plot. I pull a lot of dialogue from the original story because I'm trying to keep the experience as authentic and canon as possible for Blaire's journey. When I got to Bella and Esme's conversation on the baseball field, I actually wanted to punch myself in the face. The exposition in their dialogue was literally so unnecessary to the plot and Esme's character and DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON HOW AWKWARD IT IS like wow. I think you can tell how much I disliked it because I made Blaire mentally check out for half of it.

Also, another fun fact: The next chapter is already written so you won't have to wait another month or two for it. I'm actually hoping to finish this fanfic soon since we're almost at the end. I have exciting, nervewracking things planned.


	36. THE FIRST BATTLE

Why yes, chapter thirty-three was named in honor of the latest Avengers movie (which I still haven't seen because moving and illness), how did you guess?

Please enjoy this next chapter! It's a pretty long one, but please make sure to stick around for the author's notes at the bottom of this installment for an important update.

* * *

 **34\. THE FIRST BATTLE**

The woods didn't disappoint.

Three figures seemed to melt out of the undergrowth, standing several yards apart. Two men and a woman. One of the men, dark-skinned with long dreadlocks, stalked forward while the remaining two – a white man with brown hair and white woman with hair brighter orange than mine – flanked his sides. They closed in on us, moving quickly to my eyes, but probably slowly to the Cullens.

They looked more like I expected vampires to look. They wore worn clothes, walked barefoot, and had leaves and dirt sticking to their hair and skin and clothes. They were still attractive, but they looked entirely other compared to the careful façade the Cullens built around themselves. The wildness they had about them screamed _not human_. Especially when I saw their eyes. They were dark red. Dread settled at the pit of my stomach.

I should have brought my gun. I should have brought my gun. I should have brought that damn _gun_.

It was surreal, seeing them. These were the walking nightmares that had haunted my every waking hour. They now had forms and faces. I couldn't focus on just one as they got closer, and tried to guess which one stole my soccer ball that first day, which one left it on my mailbox, or who scratched my face, chased me home, broke into my house, decided I would be the object of their obsession, killed my uncle...

My uncle's murderers were finally here, and I didn't know how I was supposed to react.

Carlisle stepped forward to greet them, with Emmett and Jasper at his side. Jasper stood slightly further back than them, and shadowed the new-comers' feral half-crouched stances. Was it because he was expecting a fight? Was he going to try and fulfill the promise he made to me right now? It reminded me of Esme's words from yesterday: how many of his own kind feared him. I suddenly wondered why.

Whatever it was, I was sure he alone made the three halt. The dark-skinned man at the front, his skin appearing washed out and ashen now that he was closer, still stood at the head of his group, and offered everyone a wide smile that showed off his white teeth. The woman's gaze constantly flickered across the Cullens' faces, her wild curly hair ruffling in the breeze. I had a feeling my hair would have looked like hers if I hadn't spent most of my life burning it with a straightener. What had Waylon thought, seeing them that night?

"We thought we heard a game," the man with dreadlocks said, seeming to speak for the group. His voice lilted with an accent. "I am Laurent, these are Victoria and James," he added, gesturing to the other two vampires.

I barely noticed the third vampire, James, until he was introduced. He stood behind the woman, Victoria, and their leader, Laurent, perfectly still.

Staring at me.

"I'm Carlisle. This is my family, Emmett and Jasper, Rosalie, Esme and Alice, Edward and Bella, and Blaire."

While the other two vampires glanced at all of our faces, the man behind them didn't look away from me once. My heart raced. Did he recognize me? Even with the hood pulled so far over my head? My fingers tightened in Bella's arm, twisting the sleeve of her jacket, while I tried to reign in my wild emotions. I glanced to Jasper, still holding his defensive stance, focused on the three vampires I wanted to see die.

"Do you have room for a few more players?" Laurent asked.

"Actually, we were just finishing up," Carlisle said, "but we'd certainly be interested another time. Are you planning to stay in the area for long?"

"We're headed north, in fact, but we were curious to see who was in the neighborhood. We haven't run into company in a long time."

"No, this region is usually empty except for us and the occasional visitor, like yourselves," Carlisle said.

I could feel Jasper radiating calm, settling the emotions of everyone in the clearing, but his ability only lapped against me like small ripples in a pool. My feelings were too twisted, too uncontrollable, for him to try and manipulate now.

"What's your hunting range?" Laurent asked.

"The Olympic Range here, and up and down the Coast Ranges on occasion," Carlisle answered. "We keep a permanent residence nearby. There's another permanent settlement like ours up near Denali."

Laurent cocked his head to the side and rocked back on his heels as if to physically bridle his surprise. "Permanent? How do you manage that?"

"Why don't you come back to our home with us and we can talk comfortably?" Carlisle offered. "It's a rather long story."

"That sounds very interesting, and welcome." Laurent smiled again. My eyes roved over him and the other vampires, as the tally of everything they had done began to rake through my consciousness like claws. Which one had answered the phone when I called my uncle again and again that night, only to taunt me with silence? Which one of them delivered Waylon's killing blow? When I met the second man's eyes, James, I had a feeling it was him. He would die first. "We've been on the hunt all the way down from Ontario, and we haven't had the chance to clean up in a while."

"We've noticed," Carlisle said, his voice a fraction firmer than its original congenial tone. "Your hunting activities have caused something of a mess for us. From now on, we'd appreciate it if you'd refrain from hunting in this immediate area. We have to stay inconspicuous, you understand."

"Of course," Laurent said. "We certainly didn't mean to encroach. We didn't realize the territory had already been claimed. We won't be a problem anymore."

"The humans were tracking us, but we led them East," the woman, Victoria, finally spoke. Her voice was low and husky and sarcastic. Smiled at us patronizingly. "You should be safe."

But they wouldn't be. I narrowed my eyes at James, who was _still staring_.

"Excellent," Carlisle said. "We'll show you the way if you'd like to run with us. Jasper and Blaire, you can go with Edward and Bella to get the Jeep."

Everyone began to relax even more now. Jasper already had his back to the vampires to reach me, and everyone else started to move on and ready themselves for the run to the Cullens' house. Laurent and Victoria moved away from James, exposing his form, his brown leather aviator jacket and the patch of a soccer ball stitched over what had once been a hole in its right side at the bottom –

He was wearing my uncle's jacket.

The rage I felt toward Lauren Mallory was barely an ember compared to the absolute inferno that tore through me inside and out at this vampire who thought he could glide through this world unchallenged and flaunt that very fact in front of my _face_ –

The wind shifted, a breeze chilling my overheated skin.

James turned his head, eyes locked on Bella from behind Edward's arm, widening with excitement. My heart dropped when his nostrils flared. No. He wouldn't touch any more of my family! I charged without thinking. "Leave her _alone_!"

Edward jumped between James and Bella and I, letting out an inhuman snarl that set off the tension. I tried to step around him, to meet James head on –

" _Blaire_!" Jasper snapped, his arm snapping out in front of me. I collided into it with enough force to knock me back a step, which made my hood slip back.

James's focus shifted to me. He grinned, teeth flashing. "So that's why the trail went cold. How did you find them?"

I tried to claw my way out from Jasper's arm, spitting and cursing. "You fucked with the wrong town, you – you fucking _leech_! I'll kill you for what you did, I _swear_ –"

James stepped into a crouch –

Jasper whipped around, still holding me back, to face James and _snarled_. I could feel the vibrations of it through his hand fisted in my jacket. Despite it, I wrestled against his grip, tearing the fabric of my jacket as I fought to get free. I would _kill him_ –

James's gaze shifted to the side, to Edward and Bella positioned just behind him. Edward situated himself even more in front of her, out of James's line of sight, with an inhuman snarl of his own.

"What's this?" Laurent cried out. No one moved, except for me as I thrashed out of my restraint.

"I'll _kill_ you!" I screamed at James. "I'll burn you until you're _nothing_ , you fucking _monster_ –"

"By God she is beautiful," James said. My eyes widened as he turned to Victoria. "Just as violent as you predicted."

Victoria's expression was awed. My stomach flipped as a dreadful smile quirked her lips upward. "I knew she would be fantastic," she said. "She was always different from the others – even in the beginning."

"What are you talking about?" Jasper growled. I wrestled against him even more, breathless from the effort. My jacket was tearing apart.

"She's with us," Carlisle said firmly. "They both are."

"You brought… snacks?" Laurent asked.

Edward growled, just as viciously as Jasper. The noise only fed into my own rage. I was ready to _fight_.

"I said they are _with us_ ," Carlisle said.

"But they're human," Laurent said, sounding pathetically confused.

"Yes," Emmett said. I never looked at him, only focused on how close I was to wrenching myself free of Jasper's hold.

"It appears we have a lot to learn about each other," Laurent said, his voice calm, or trying to be.

"Indeed," Carlisle answered icily.

"And we'd like to accept your invitation," Laurent went on. "Of course, we will not harm the human girls. We won't hunt in your range, as I said."

I flung my weight back, effectively ripping my jacket out of Japer's hand, tearing a giant hole in the middle of it. "It's too late for that," I growled at James, surging for him again –

Jasper lunged in front of me, still facing James, while a set of cold arms clasped around me and barred me from moving and inch closer. "Blaire, please," Alice whispered frantically in my ear. "Please stop. Please stop." I glared around at her, catching James's grin out of the corner of my eye.

"You killed one of her own," Jasper said. "She demands restitution."

"Oh, we know," James said. "We hoped that she would."

"The fuck are you talking about?" I spat. "Why – _Why_? What do you _want_?"

The monster's grin was set in place. A growl simmered at the back of Edward's throat.

"It doesn't matter now," Carlisle said. "The violence ends here. We are done."

" _Done_?" I said, incredulously. "You – Are you _serious_ –?"

"We will show you the way," Carlisle told Laurent. "Emmett, Rosalie, Esme?"

The three gathered around Carlisle and the rogue coven. I fought against Alice even harder. "I'm not done with you!" I screamed.

"Nor us with you," Victoria assured me.

Alice easily hauled me back in the opposite direction, while Edward had to drag a nearly catatonic Bella along. I glared at her stunned expression.

"Do you see now?" I demanded. "Do you see how fucking insane this is? Do you still want it now, Bella? Do you?"

Bella gaped at me. "I – I –"

"Easy," Jasper said, pulling me from Alice's arms. I used the break between them to shove myself backwards, landing on my ass among the ferns just beyond the treeline. I strained to look around them, at the now empty field where my uncle's killers had just stood. They just looked me in the eye, and _reveled_ in their crime. Jasper propped me back up within the same moment, and I tried to shove him. Of course, he didn't budge, and I ended up stumbling back a few steps.

"Don't tell me _easy_!" I shouted at him. "You know he's not done yet! That fucking psychopath is just getting started –"

"I know. Now listen." Jasper took the side of my face in his large, cold hand, positioning his thumb underneath my jaw and tilting it back until I was forced to look up at him. He was grim, determined. "We need to leave this place. We lost this fight and we need to let it go to prepare for the next."

I glared at him, my chest hurting from how fast my heart raced. We lost this fight. It seemed that's all I was able to do against them. _Lose_. When would I win?

"Can you do that, Blaire?" Jasper asked.

The next time I dealt with them, I _would_ win it all.

"Fine," I ground out.

He released me, giving me enough time to take a deep breath before he slung me on his back and tore into the forest. Edward plowed ahead of us, even with Bella's weight on his back, fading into the dark trees ahead. Alice flanked Jasper's side.

I barely comprehended the scenery flying past us until I was dropped into the backseat of Emmett's Jeep beside Bella. Alice managed to squeeze between us in a blur. I grappled for my seatbelt when Edward cranked the car, and Jasper twisted around in his seat to help strap me in while Alice buckled Bella's seatbelt.

The drive out from the woods was bumpy, chaotic, and pitch black. Edward didn't even turn on the headlights, so I couldn't see anything around the SUV. I braced myself along the frame of the Jeep as Edward raced through the forest. He finally turned on the lights when we made it out on a main road, and he accelerated to the highway, quickly passing signs informing us we were heading south of Forks.

"Where are we going?" Bella asked.

I met Jasper's eyes in the side mirror. Under the orange flashes of streetlights passing overhead, a silent understanding passed between us. This was what he'd been expecting, but not so soon. We thought I would have more time to prepare. To say goodbye to my family, my old life, because I would never be able to go back to it now. My eyes watered, and I tilted my head back to rest it against the seat to will the tears away. James's disgustingly smug grin flashed behind my closed eyes, forcing me to keep them open.

"Dammit, Edward!" Bella exclaimed. "Where are you taking me?"

"We have to get you both away from here – far away – now," Edward answered.

"Turn around! You have to take me home!" Bella exclaimed, clawing at her seatbelt straps.

"Alice," Edward said.

Alice grabbed Bella's hands and held them in place. Bella began to panic. "No! Edward! No, you can't do this."

"I have to, Bella," Edward said, "now please be quiet."

"Why does she have to?" I asked. "If I –"

"James saw the way you reacted to him only _looking_ at her," Edward said, sighing. "And the way I reacted. He thinks killing her will be the final test for you – the thing that will push you to your breaking point."

My _breaking_ _point_? "But – But why? Why is he so interested? What am I –"

"A child. A successor. A legacy," Edward answered. "Whatever you want to call it, James and the female with him, Victoria, want it. They feel their family is incomplete without it. They wanted one that would look like her."

And I'd just thought that our hair had looked similar. I was going to be sick.

Edward cracked the windows, allowing fresh crisp air into the car. "But they didn't want just any one who happened to look similar to her," he explained. "They wanted one who could withstand. They wanted one who could be thrown into the fire and be forged stronger, more ruthless. They've tried before, but the last ones either perished or… or went insane from the psychological torture they had to endure. They think you're the one they've been looking for."

I tried to think rationally through the terror pounding in my head. I rubbed my hands over my face, willing tears back to wherever they came from. I couldn't cry. I couldn't be weak now. What was worse – I suddenly questioned if I was reacting this way because I was fighting to get out of my situation the way any normal person would, or because I was reacting based on how these monsters manipulated me into becoming. "They... wanted... They want me to become one of you."

That was their game. The terrorizing, the... the _torture_ , had all been to see how I would react. It had all been to see what kind of monster they could make out of a human before changing them into the real thing.

"I – I don't know what to do," I whispered. I looked at Jasper's reflection in the side mirror helplessly. "What am I supposed to do?"

"It's safest to take both of you away from Forks," Jasper said evenly.

"Charlie will call the FBI!" Bella exclaimed. "With Blaire's disappearance too – they'll be all over your family – Carlisle and Esme! They'll have to leave, to hide forever!"

"Calm down, Bella," Edward said. "We've been there before."

They _had_?

"Not over me, you won't!" Bella cried. "You're not ruining everything over me! Blaire can still get out, you can still work the runaway teenager thing, but _two_ girls within a couple of _days_? It'll never work!"

"Edward," Alice said. "Pull over."

The car accelerated.

"Edward, let's just talk this through," she went on.

"You don't understand!" Edward yelled at her. "He's a tracker, Alice. Did you see that? He's a _tracker_!"

In the mirror, Jasper's eyes cut to Edward.

"Pull over, Edward," Alice said, her tone more serious than I'd ever heard it before. " _Now_."

"Listen to me, Alice. I saw his mind. Tracking is his passion, his obsession – and he wants _them_ , Alice – both of them, specifically. He begins the hunt _tonight_."

"He doesn't know where –"

"How long do you think it will take him to cross their scents in town?" Edward interrupted her. "His plan was set in motion long before this baseball game."

" _Charlie_!" Bella cried. "You can't leave him there! You can't _leave him_!"

"What about my parents?" I asked Jasper. "Those vampires have been stalking me, they've been to my house, they know they're still there –"

"If the tracker believes Bella is your final test, he'll leave your family alone," Jasper said. "You've already left your home, and in his mind, your parents are not pieces of any value in his game to... to get to you."

I let out a slow breath, sagging against my seatbelt. "But what about Bella? She doesn't have that kind of… that kind of proof to show him."

"She's right," Alice said.

The car slowed.

"Let's just look at our options for a minute," she added.

Edward pulled the car on the shoulder of the highway, coming to an abrupt stop that flung Bella and I into our harnesses, then back into the seats. He twisted around in his seat to glare at Alice. "There are no options," he hissed.

"I'm not leaving Charlie!" Bella shouted.

"We need to take Bella back," Jasper said.

"No," Edward snapped at him.

"Yes!" I snapped back. "I'm not putting anyone else at risk! If you don't, I'll find James and end this _myself_!"

My words might as well have been an atomic bomb. The silence that followed seemed to swallow up the entire world. It was thick, uncomfortable to breathe in like ash or debris, and for a minute, no one seemed to know what to do.

In the quiet, I thought. This... This could work. If I was what he wanted, I could keep Bella and the rest of my family safe if I just went to him myself. I could find a way to end him on my own, or come up with an attack plan with Jasper –

Edward's eyes widened. "Blaire, stop –"

Jasper flung open his door, so hard the entire _thing_ flew off of the car and into a steep grassy hill beyond the guardrail. My stomach flew up into my throat as he got out of his seat and lunged for my door. He wrenched it open, unbuckled my seatbelt, and yanked me out of the car so fast I didn't even have time to scream. My back hit the hill beyond the guardrail, soft enough that my head didn't hit the ground, but hard enough that it knocked the wind out of me. Jasper descended on me, kneeling over me, practically forcing me to lie back on the ground, his expression twisted in such a rage I was shaking before he even opened his mouth.

"You will _never_ say that again," he said, the words shockingly quiet and all the more devastating. "Do you hear me? _Never_."

I could feel his fury, crackling hot, practically burning in my own veins. But more than that, I could feel that all-consuming, horrifying black hole of desperation: the feeling that always seemed to be in the background of all of his feelings toward me.

"Meeting the tracker head on will only end with your death, and that it something I will not allow. You will do anything and everything in your power to live through this," he said. "You _will not_ die. Do you understand?"

My chest heaved, and I tried my best to nod.

"Promise me," he said. "Whatever you have to do, you will survive."

"I – I p – I promise," I said, breathless.

Jasper sighed, his eyes fluttering shut. His shoulders slumped. "Damn you," he breathed. "Damn you, you beautiful, wild, _selfless_ creature."

Beautiful?

He leaned down, pressing his forehead against mine, his cool temperature a welcome relief against my flushed skin.

 **V**

"This is how it's going to happen," Edward said, glaring at Bella in the rearview mirror while she looked almost triumphant, in a weird, terrified sort of way. "When we get to the house, if the tracker is not there, I will walk her to the door. Then she has fifteen minutes. Jasper will take the outside of the house, Alice will get the truck, and Blaire will stay in the Jeep. After Bella is out, Jasper and Blaire will take the Jeep wherever and Alice will run home and tell Carlisle."

"We can try and meet somewhere and caravan together," Jasper explained, glancing at me in the rearview mirror, since his explosion on the highway took off not only the door, but the side mirror. The cold air ripping through the car sent mine and Bella's teeth chattering. "But it may not be likely."

"And if the tracker is at Bella's house," Edward continued, "we keep driving."

"We're going to make it there before him," Alice said. "And I won't be running home. I'll stay with Blaire and Jazz and help coordinate a time for us to meet and caravan."

Edward shook his head, muttering under his breath.

"I think you should let me go alone," Bella said, quietly.

"Bella, _please_ , just do this my way, just this once," Edward said.

"Listen, Charlie's not an imbecile," she pointed out. "If you're not in town tomorrow, he's going to get suspicious."

"That's irrelevant," he said. "We'll make sure he's safe, and that's all that matters."

"Then what about the tracker?" she demanded. "He saw the way you acted tonight. He's going to think you're with me, wherever you are."

"She's right," Jasper said.

"Yes, she is," Alice added.

Edward's eyes widened at Alice. "And you think I should let her go alone?"

"No," Jasper said. "Alice and I will take them both."

"What?" Edward snapped.

"Think of the humans' point of view," Jasper reasoned. "Blaire technically disappeared first. Everyone's already assumed we're lovers that ran off together. We can build Bella running off because she couldn't take the loss of her best friend… and the end of a relationship, as part of the narrative."

Bella's face was thoughtful. "It does make sense…" she admitted, then looked imploringly at Edward in the mirror. "Hang out here for a week – or a few days. Let Charlie see you haven't kidnapped me, and lead this James on a wild goose-chase. Make sure he's completely off our trail. Then come and meet me. Take a roundabout route, of course, and then…"

"Then you'll be safe," I told her, but I met Jasper's eyes again. "And we can prepare for the next battle."

 **V**

* * *

WAIT. WAIT. WAIT.

ANNOUNCEMENT.

The next chapter is going to be the beginning of the final chapters to this story. I said I would take this fanfiction in a slightly different direction than other stories, and I meant it. To be honest, these next chapters are what I've been most excited to write since I decided I even wanted to start this story.

But it will be violent. It will be sad. It will be scary.

That being said, I will post trigger/content warnings above chapters as needed. I wanted to let you guys know now before moving on with the next update so no one is taken by surprise or is needlessly hurt by this story.

I'm also wondering if I should go ahead and rate it up from "T" to "M" because I am so worried about how people will perceive the future content. I'd love to hear any and all thoughts, please.


	37. RAVAGE

The responses about changing this story from "T" to "M" were split down the middle, so for now I'll keep the rating how it is at "T," and list trigger warnings before every installment from here on out.

 **TRIGGER WARNINGS**

 _car crashes_

 _death/dying_

* * *

 **35\. RAVAGE**

I sat, huddled in the furthest corner of the darkened Jeep, and stared at Bella's house. Every now and then, I saw the silhouette of her through a lit window, with Charlie close behind. What would she say to him? What would she do to make him let her leave? He would try so hard to make her stay – she would have to do something terrible, say something even worse – to get out of that house.

It seemed like simply knowing these vampires were making monsters out of both of us.

Then I saw Bella sprint for her truck, a duffel bag slipping off her shoulder. I could see fat ugly tears pouring down her face from the porch light. "I'll call you tomorrow!" she yelled to the house before slamming herself into the truck. She peeled out of the driveway, away from her house.

My eyes misted over. I rubbed at my nose in an attempt to push the tears back.

Alice suddenly slipped into the driver's seat and started the car. "It's okay," she said before pulling away from the Swan house. "He won't go after Charlie. He's decided that much."

I folded my arms tight around myself and stared out the window. Air whistled through the car through its open door, chilling me. "I was scared about leaving before," I muttered, "but I think I'm relieved now. No one else will have to get hurt."

Alice followed right behind Bella's truck on the darkened rural highway, barely lit with sparsely placed streetlamps. I could see the intensity of her expression from the rearview mirror in those brief flashes of light. Gone was the bubbly carefree girl I first met, she'd been replaced by the second half of herself – a capable creature acting with a singular goal in mind.

"Do you still love him?" I blurted out. Alice glanced at me in the mirror. Maybe if I were less afraid, if I didn't need the distraction, I never would have said anything, but with Alice here helping Jasper – helping _me_ – I had to know why.

She drummed her fingers along the steering wheel once. "Not in the way you're worried about," she said. I didn't bother denying I was worried. "Jazz… He was the first vampire – the first person – who saw who and what I was and loved me anyway. At the time, we didn't know there was a difference between loving someone and being _in love_ with someone. We just took the emotions we felt for each other and ran with them. It was only later that we knew it wasn't going to work out... and why.

"He was my first vision," she continued, quickly. "Meeting him was one of the most defining moments of my life. The connection we have… it's beyond best friends, or siblings, but it's not the same as a mate."

"A mate?" I echoed.

"It's… It's our kind's way of finding the one," Alice explained. "It's not an unusual occurrence for us, but when vampires mate it's a permanent thing. It's a choice between two beings that creates an eternal bond. It's something that can't be undone."

"So if it's a choice, why didn't you and Jasper just make it?" I asked.

"Because it doesn't work like that," she said, sighing. "You feel a… a sort of pull. Jasper and I never had that."

I frowned and slouched in my seat. "I'm sorry," I said. "It's probably – more like definitely – rude to bring this up, I was just wondering –"

"It's okay, Blaire," Alice said. In the mirror, I could see a slight smile on her face. "Jasper and I are best friends the way you and Bella are. I just want him to be happy, just like he wants me to be happy. I'd do anything for him, just like you'd do anything for Bella, right?"

"Right," I said immediately. I would do anything for Bella, which meant I had to keep her safe from James at all costs.

"That also means the people who are most important to him are important to me too," she added, quietly.

"Wait, what –"

A heavy weight suddenly smacked into the Jeep, making it rattle. I straightened up –

"It's me," Jasper said as he sunk into the passenger seat, like he hadn't just leapt out of the forest and jumped into a car going forty miles an hour. "The tracker saw the tail end of Bella's act. He's only following us now."

I sagged in relief, but I knew it wouldn't last long. It seemed like anything good never lasted long lately.

The Cullens' house was lit brightly like it had been the first night I came here – a warm beacon in the cold dark woods. Emmett collected Bella from her truck and darted into the house, and Jasper came to my door like he would do the same –

I shook my head and slipped out of the car. I kept my head held high and strode into the house on my own. If James was out there watching me, I wouldn't show him how scared I was. The time for that was over. Jasper and Alice hovered just behind me, ready to shield me if I actually needed them.

The walk up to the house felt too long and too tense, and my shoulders drooped when we made it through the threshold of the door, but tensed again as soon as I stepped into the living room and saw Laurent standing in the middle of it. Jasper's hand rested between my shoulders. I felt the chill of his skin through my jacket.

"He's tracking us," Edward announced to him and everyone else in the house.

Laurent's forehead creased in concern. "I was afraid of that."

"Can you stop him?" Carlisle asked coolly.

The coven leader shook his head. "Nothing stops James when he gets started."

"Then we'll stop him," Emmett said.

"You can't bring him down," Laurent said. "I've never seen anything like him in my three hundred years. He's absolutely lethal. That's why I joined his coven."

 _His_ coven. It made more sense now, with how he could get away with stalking me for so long. He was the one actually calling the shots.

"Are you sure it's worth it?" Laurent asked. Edward answered with another inhuman snarl that made the other vampire flinch.

"I'm afraid you're going to have to make a choice," Carlisle said gravely.

Laurent glanced at everyone in the room, before his eyes finally landed on me. I straightened up and met his gaze. "He'll do anything to get what he wants. Don't underestimate him. He's got a brilliant mind and unparalleled senses. He's every bit as comfortable in the human world as you all seem to be, and he won't come at you head on… I'm sorry for what's been unleashed here. Truly sorry."

"Not as sorry as he'll be," Jasper assured him.

"Go in peace," Carlisle said.

Laurent flitted out of the house barely a second after.

"How close?" Carlisle asked Edward as Esme drifted to the side of the house, flipping open a keypad I hadn't noticed before. The house gave a low groan, and a curtain of metal closed over the house's exposed glass wall. Bella's jaw dropped. My eyes widened.

"About three miles out past the river," Edward answered. "He's circling around to meet up with the female."

"What's the plan?" Carlisle asked.

"We'll lead him off, and then Alice and Jasper will run Blaire and Bella south," Edward answered.

"And then?"

"As soon as they're clear, we hunt him."

"What?" I demanded. "James killed Waylon. He's supposed to be _mine_ –"

"We're not going to handle this like some petty grudge match," Edward said sharply. "You'll get your life for a life, what does it matter how you got it?"

"It matters!" I exclaimed. "He stole my family from me, my life – I deserve this!"

Jasper rested a hand on my shoulder, stopping me short. I glared up at him. "But –"

"Let's focus on Bella's safety first," Jasper said. "Then we'll move from there."

My glare flattened into a frown when I understood. He had a point. Killing James was only half of my goal. Saving everyone I called my family was the other half – the most important half. I would have my moment. Jasper wouldn't deny me that.

Edward was already talking to Rosalie. "Get Bella upstairs and trade clothes."

Rosalie actually looked affronted. "Why should I? What is she to me, except a menace – a danger you've chosen to inflict on all of us."

"Hey, Rosalie," I snapped. "Fuck you."

She hissed at me. I almost wanted to bare my teeth and growl back at her, but Jasper beat me to it, the vibration of his answering snarl shooting down my spine.

"Esme?" Edward asked, his voice strained.

"Of course," the mother of the coven returned, quickly whisking Bella upstairs. I frowned after them.

"Your clothes should be all right, since they've mingled with Jasper's scent for so long," Alice said, suddenly in front of me, toting duffel bags and backpacks on her shoulders. I was amazed she could carry it all. She held something black in her arms and offered it to me. "But you should take this, just in case."

My fingers drifted over soft, well-loved leather. It was heavy, and cool to the touch. When I held it out in front of me, my heart skipped. Jasper's motorcycle jacket.

"Wear it," Jasper said as he took some of the bags from Alice. I shoved my arms through the sleeves and pulled it over my shoulders. It was too large, practically hanging off me, but I would make it work. I tried to grab my duffel bag and backpack from Alice, but Jasper deftly moved in front of me and intercepted both. I huffed at him. He finally looked down at me, eyes roving up and down, making my heart race as his assessment finally ended with a smirk. My face flushed.

"Esme and Rosalie will be taking your truck, Bella," Carlisle said, making me turn. Bella was already downstairs, wearing Esme's clothes. She nodded to him and cringed away from Rosalie who stood beside him. "Alice and Jasper will take the Mercedes. You'll need the dark tint in the south. We're taking the Jeep."

Behind me, Jasper lurched a step forward when Emmett bumped his shoulder roughly. "I'll get you back for what you did to my door," he said, only half-joking.

"Alice," Carlisle said, "will they take the bait?"

Everyone stilled, watching Alice. She opened her eyes. "He'll track you," she said. "The woman will follow the truck. We should be able to leave after that."

"Let's go then," Carlisle said, striding for the kitchen.

Edward stopped beside Bella and pulled her into him, sweeping her off her feet to give her a passionate kiss that startled me out of any rational thought. They were _kissing_? How – Wait – _What_?

Then he was gone, leaving Bella in the middle of the living room, crying. I immediately went to her and wrapped my arms around her. "It's going to be okay," I said. "I promise I'll get you through this."

Esme's cell phone vibrated. "Now," she said. She and Rosalie left through the front door, Esme brushing her hand along Bella's cheek as she passed. "Be safe," she said. "Both of you."

Then there was us.

One minute passed. Excitement rattled within me, kicking off a sudden restlessness to leave. To _move_. I was ready to leave Forks, to finally put everyone I loved out of danger. Things were lining up now. I wanted to see them through. It was strange, feeling the sudden optimism, the hope –

I looked at Jasper, who hung back near the entryway of the house. He leaned against the wall, hands tucked into the pockets of his joggers, blond curls falling across his forehead, the corner of his mouth quirked up. He shrugged, as if helpless. "Not me," he said.

I could almost smile at that.

Then Alice pulled her phone to her ear just before it vibrated. "Edward says the woman is on Esme's trail. I'll get the car." Then she darted off.

Jasper stayed where he was, watching Bella and I, his slight smile falling. "You're wrong, you know," he suddenly said.

"What?" I asked.

He nodded to Bella. "I can feel what she's feeling," he said, before he looked at her, "You _are_ worth it."

"I – I don't –" Bella slumped against me. "If anything happens to them, it will be for nothing."

"Nothing's going to happen," I said, squeezing her. "We're all going to make it."

 **V**

I'd never been in a Mercedes before, much less the backseat, but as soon as I settled behind the Alice in the passenger seat, I understood what the big deal was. Even though Carlisle's car was a coup, the backseat still felt spacious. The whole car felt bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside, and smelled like leather and new car. It practically glided along the road, and I wouldn't have known we were hitting the high nineties unless I was glancing at the speedometer. The car lurched into an even higher speed once we hit the highway.

Bella leaned into me, her head resting on my shoulder, as she cried and cried. I tried to comfort her as best I could, promised her that everything would be okay, that everyone was safe. Didn't she realize how lucky we were? We'd gotten _away_. James would still be running around in circles by the time he saw me coming to end him, with Jasper at my side. Everything would be right again soon.

Then I felt something in Bella's jacket buzz against my side, making me jump. She straightened up and dug into her pocket to pull out her phone. She flipped it open and frowned at the caller ID flashing on the screen. I frowned too.

 ** _B'S MOM_**

"I told Charlie I was leaving because I thought I knew where I could find you," Bella said. "It seemed like a better idea than trying to make it seem like I was running away too."

I could barely congratulate her on the much better alibi. Her phone kept pulsing with my mom's call.

Bella's thumb hovered over her keypad. "Should I…?"

"I will," I said, taking her phone. I clicked the answer button and held it to my ear, while Bella scooted to the other side of the backseat to try and create some semblance of privacy. Even Jasper and Alice seemed to stare pointedly at the road ahead of us now. I took a deep breath, "Um… Hey, Mom."

" _Blaire?!_ " my mom cried. " _Oh my God – Bella found you? Where are you? Your father and I were so scared! Why would you – How could you do this?_ "

I trembled. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you guys, but I'm okay. I'm better now. I just… I had to do something, but I'll be back soon. Everything will go back to normal –"

" _You had to_ do something _?_ " my mom demanded. " _What the hell are you doing? No, Blaire, you need to come home_ now _._ "

How could I even tell her what I was doing? What could I say instead of the truth?

Then, my mom made let out a shuddering breath on the other line. " _Honey, please_ ," she said, her voice wavering. She was crying. Oh God, I made her cry. Tears sprung to my own eyes. " _I'm trying to understand, I really am. Don't you see how scary this is? I'm so afraid for you, and I don't even know what's going on!_ "

If she actually knew, it would be so much worse. I ground my teeth, forcing myself to keep the truth back. She didn't need to know it. Bella was already one person too many.

Then my mom sobbed. " _Please come home, Blaire_ ," she cried. " _I'm begging you. I'll do anything – whatever you need – just please come home. We love you so much, we need you, please –_ "

My mom screamed.

Bella heard it from her seat and frowned at me.

The line crackled with deafening sound. Tires screeching, the phone clattering –

"Mom?"

 _CRASH!_

" _Mom_?"

– more clattering, a car horn blaring –

"Mom?" I asked again. "Mom! _Mom_!"

I only heard the car horn, still blaring, distantly on the other line. My trembling increased to actually shaking. " _Mom_!"

Alice gasped sharply. "Oh God."

"What?" I asked her, my face slick with tears. "Is she okay? Did you see what happened? Mom, answer me! _Mom_!"

The phone made another clattering noise.

" _Did you really think you could fool us?_ "

Oh God. Everything bottomed out beneath me. I was only grounded by the phone I gripped tight in my hand, and the raspy chuckle of the redheaded female vampire from the baseball field.

"Jasper, pull over," Alice commanded.

"What did you do?" I demanded. "Leave her alone! She doesn't have anything to do with this! _Mom_!"

The sound of the blaring horn became louder. " _You're right. She didn't._ " Despite the background noise, I could hear her voice perfectly clear. " _But then you decided to get cocky. That can't go unpunished._ "

"No," I uttered. "No, no, no! Please! _Stop_! Leave her _alone_!"

" _This could have gone so much easier for you_ ," the woman went on. " _We had already decided to keep you. Then you had to pull this stunt. What did you think would happen?_ "

"Okay, okay, okay!" I screamed. "I'll stop, I'll stop! I'll do whatever you want! Just please leave her alone!"

" _It's too late for that. Defiance like yours requires more than a promise. It requires consequence._ "

My mom screamed again. The sound shot straight through me. She was in Forks somewhere, trapped with a vampire, in danger, and I was stuck in this car, locked on the highway, unable to stop any of it.

I slammed my fist into the side of the car. "Goddammit stop it!" I screamed. "Leave her alone! _Please_! Please don't do this! I'll do whatever you want –"

 _Crack!_

My blood turned to ice in my veins.

My breath caught.

"M – Mom?"

" _Do not test us again._ "

The line went dead.

The entire world went dead.

I felt the car swerve sharply to the shoulder of the highway. Alice's door suddenly opened, her seat flew forward, and Jasper yanked me out of the backseat and into his arms, pressing my face into his shoulder where I felt the wetness of my tears, snot, and drool. My mouth was open, my throat was raw.

I was screaming.

I clung to him fiercely, grabbing at his shoulders, his neck, anything I could hold onto to keep myself from falling into oblivion. I could feel Jasper's arms around me, tight as vices, but it didn't stop me from slipping.

I was still screaming, but I could almost hear my voice now.

" _Help me_!" I screamed and raged and sobbed. " _Help me_!"

I screamed all the way down into the darkness, forced into a void and out of a world I would never see the same again.

 **V**

* * *

I'm just... gonna be over here.

Yeah.


	38. AFTERMATH

How are we doing after that last chapter? Not gonna lie, I have a desire to round up my favorite comments and make a collage out of them. You guys destroyed me lmao.

Blaire is suffering from PTSD now, and will continue to do so for the remainder of this story, and maybe the story after that.

What?

* * *

 **36\. AFTERMATH**

I passed a soccer ball between my feet as I dribbled down the length of the Forks High's soccer field. The grass under me was lush and emerald, the sky overhead was gray. I ran through the drills I knew by heart, starting with rotating step-ons and transitioning into sole-rolls. The world was perfectly still. I was perfectly alone.

Then rustling came from the trees.

I propped one of my feet on top of the soccer ball and angled myself toward the forest laying just beyond the field. My heart began to beat hard and fast in my chest, so intense I wondered when it would give out on me, because it wasn't a question of ' _if_ ' anymore. Too much had happened. I was only dying now. There would be no comeback. I didn't think I wanted there to be, either.

I stared out into the woods, trying to see past the dense evergreen undergrowth, but it was useless. What was out there? Was it – No, it couldn't have been – _No_ –

Something _moved_ against one of the trees.

It was too quick for me to follow. A dark shape that slipped away before I could discern if it was an animal or… or something else. My hands curled into fists.

" _Blaire_."

The voice was quiet, a whisper on the wind. If I wasn't so acutely aware of everything around me, I would have ignored it. I would have believed my ears were playing tricks on me, irrational fear making me believe in things that weren't there.

But this fear wasn't irrational, was it?

After all, too much had happened.

I was amazed I didn't scream, but I was frozen. My body was stock still from the fear piling up in me like cement.

The air shifted behind me, sending a cold chill down my spine. I spun around, forcing myself to remain calm even when I didn't see anything behind me. My backpack had been propped up against the bleachers on the other side of the field. I watched, helpless, as it tipped over on its side in the wake of an invisible force.

I wasn't alone.

My worst fears were being realized.

Then my foot I had propped on the soccer ball _dropped_ hard on the ground, as if the ball had been kicked out from under me –

Because it had been.

I stared, horrorstruck, as it bounced away from me and into the forest, rolling fast. The trees and undergrowth swallowed it up like the gaping jaws of a monster. Tears sprung to my eyes as I stood there, terrified, alone, oh God this could _not_ be my life –

But it was.

No.

No.

On either side of a tree, clawed hands stretched out and around the bark, followed by a white face and razor sharp teeth. James – his face contorted to look more like a monster than a human – grinned out at me and opened his mouth.

My mom's scream came out.

 _NO – !_

" _Blaire_."

I bolted upright, immediately blinded by the glaring light coming from the title menu of a DVD on a TV set on a dresser. I gasped sharply, tried to regain my bearings, flailed when I started falling backwards –

Cold hands grabbed my shoulders with bruising force. I hissed at the pain, but grappled the arms they were connected to as I forced myself to calm down, to allow the room around me to bleed into focus.

The harsh glow from the TV illuminated a bland room with blank walls and ugly carpet. A hotel room. It was blessedly empty. I glared at the barely hidden glow of a brightly lit McDonald's sign just outside the window next to me, my panic spiking when the air conditioning unit underneath it kicked to life.

"Blaire."

My eyes flicked up to Jasper, who held me upright. He was so close, seated on the side of the bed only inches from my legs tucked under the comforter of the bed someone laid me on. Jasper was washed out in the light in the room, except for his eyes. They were a stark yellow contrast against the brightness of the TV and the remaining shadows of the room. They were focused on me in a way that burned somewhere deep inside; underneath muscle, intertwined with the marrow in my bones.

"It was a dream," he said. His voice was smooth, soft like the darkness wrapped around us. "You're all right. You're safe here."

I was safe here, with his hands clutching me, grounding me. My fingers curled into the soft sleeves of the Henley covering his arms, letting his mere presence chase the nightmare away. It had no business existing in the space he created between us.

But I wasn't safe. No one around me was. My mom – My mom – Oh God, my _mom_!

My eyes overflowed with tears. They spilled down my cheeks as I struggled to breathe. A sob bubbled up from my throat.

Jasper's expression crumpled. In a flash, I was wrapped up in his arms, leaning into his solid unmoving form.

"Alice didn't see it coming," he murmured. "The female with the tracker had been upset, so her choice hadn't been premeditated. It was an impulse from anger. Carlisle got there as quickly as he could, but… She didn't suffer, Blaire. It was quick."

I gripped his shoulders, digging my nails into the thin material of his shirt, and sobbed. "I – I – I –"

Jasper shushed me, his cool breath brushing across my forehead. "I'm so sorry," he whispered. "So, so sorry. We _will_ end them for this, and Waylon."

I didn't say anything. I couldn't.

I just wanted it all to end.

I didn't know how long we stayed in that empty hotel room. I didn't know how long I cried.

I didn't know how much more I could take.

Jasper seemed to sense that. He kept his arms around me, like he was trying to hold me together. Maybe he was. Maybe if he let go, I would crumble into dust.

My entire life was ravaged. I didn't think I could see one thing left unscathed by the disaster James had set upon me beyond the carefully constructed fortress of Jasper's arms.

"You need to eat something," he said, finally breaking the thick silence. "Or drink. You haven't done much of either."

Did I deserve either? My family was _dying_ because of me. I just wanted to die with them.

"Blaire," Jasper said.

Didn't he understand? Even _existing_ right now was a struggle.

Jasper let out a slow breath, and began to unwind his arms from around me even slower. I didn't know how, but the world felt colder when he slid back along the bed, across from me. My hands fell into my lap, clutching the comforter beneath them. My shoulders throbbed from where he first grabbed them. The space separating us felt like miles, cavernous and unyielding. I blinked my swollen, tearless eyes.

"You have to keep fighting," he said. "You still have Bella, and her father, and yours counting on you. You have to remember this is for them, too."

He was right. With his words echoing at the forefront of my still muddled mind, I left the bedroom and joined Bella and Alice in a living area. Bella greeted me by practically tripping into my arms, and the tears renewed.

 **V**

Jasper and Alice had checked us into a suite at a hotel near Phoenix's airport, just in case we needed to fly anywhere for a quick escape. All of the windows had curtains that had been drawn, leaving the suite dim. The only light came from TVs playing shows or movies none of us paid attention to.

Bella and I ate room service at intervals, signaling that time was actually passing. I barely picked at them. Everything tasted like ash. The air was stale. I glanced between the door, thinking James or that female would kick it down, and at Alice's phone sitting on the coffee table, waiting for more news.

Bella had to throw hers away, because they didn't think the line was secure.

Nothing was secure.

I kept Waylon's gun holstered to my hip, hidden underneath Jasper's jacket. Waiting. It was only second-best to my mom's arms around me, shielding me from the world. When was the last time we even hugged each other, or the last time I said I loved her. But I remembered the last time she told me. _We love you, we need you, please..._

Then she'd screamed.

"How do you become a vampire?" Bella suddenly asked, jarring me.

She, Alice, and I were grouped in the bedroom. Jasper stayed in the living room, probably trying to distance himself from the scent of our blood. Bella lay across the bed while Alice sat near her, and I sat on an armchair looking at the gauzy bright whiteness of the thick hotel curtain. I turned to her at the question. It was an interesting question. A distracting one.

"Edward doesn't want me to tell you that," Alice told her.

Bella's brows furrowed. "That's not fair. I think I have a right to know."

Alice frowned back. "I know."

Both of us waited now.

Alice sighed. "He'll be extremely angry."

"It's none of his business," Bella said simply. "This is between us. Alice, as a friend, I'm begging you."

"Don't say that."

Both of them startled at the sharpness of my tone. It even surprised me. But I held firm. She didn't have a right to say it. She didn't know the meaning of _begging_.

"I'm sorry," Bella said, quietly.

"I'll… tell you the mechanics of it," Alice said, slowly working to change the direction of the conversation. Moving delicately to step around my hairpin trigger of a temper. "I don't remember it myself, and I've never done it or seen it done, so keep in mind that I can only tell you the theory. Blaire?"

I slowly dragged my gaze from the curtain to her. She met my stare evenly. "Is this something you want to hear?"

Right. Because this was what Edward said James wanted. His end goal. Everything and everyone around me were only means to his end. I curled my hands into fists. "Sure," I ground out. "Why not? I should probably prepare myself for whatever the fuck that tracker wants to do with me, right?"

Bella's eyes widened. "Oh God," she said. "Blaire, I didn't – We should stop – I wasn't even –"

I hated seeing her flounder. She was trying to make the best of a situation I forced her in, and I was treating her like it was her fault. I shook my head. "Sorry," I muttered. "I'm fine." Even though I wasn't fine. I would never be _fine_ again.

After a beat, Alice began. "As predators, we have a glut of weapons in our physical arsenal – much, much more than really necessary. The strength, the speed, the acute senses, not to mention those of us like Edward, Jasper, and I, who have extra senses as well. And then, like a carnivorous flower, we are physically attractive to our prey."

James wasn't attractive. He was a monster.

"We have another fairly superfluous weapon. We're also venomous," Alice went on. "the venom doesn't kill – it's merely incapacitating. It works slowly, spreading through the bloodstream so that, once bitten, our prey is in too much physical pain to escape us. Mostly superfluous, as I said. If we're that close, the prey doesn't escape. Of course, there are always exceptions. Carlisle's turning, for example."

Bella was rapt, obviously making a connection I didn't understand. "So…" she summarized, "if the venom is left to spread…"

"It takes a few days for the transformation to be complete, depending on how much venom is in the bloodstream, how close the venom enters to the heart. As long as the heart keeps beating, the poison spreads, healing, changing the body as it moves through. Eventually the heart stops, and the conversion is finished. But all that time, every minute of it, a victim would be wishing for death."

I could relate turning into a vampire to my current experience, but that was what James wanted, wasn't it? To torture me until he decided I would be turned, and see if I would become a monster even before their venom hit?

"It's… not pleasant, you see," Alice said, needlessly.

But then again, no ending involving a vampire was ever pleasant, was it?

"Edward said that it was very hard to do…" Bella said. "I don't quite understand."

"We're also like sharks in that way. Once we taste the blood, or even smell it for that matter, it becomes very hard to keep from feeding. Sometimes impossible. So you see, to actually bite someone, to taste the blood, it would begin the frenzy. It's difficult on both sides – the blood-lust on one hand, the awful pain on the other."

Maybe that was why James and his coven hung around me for so long. Why they only cut me. They wanted to draw the blood. They wanted to make sure they could stop themselves when the time came…

"You don't remember your… turning?" I asked, just to distract myself from trying to count all of the times I could have died.

Alice shrugged. "No. For everyone else, the pain of the transformation is the sharpest memory they have of their human life. I remember nothing of being human."

Did that mean there was a possibility I wouldn't remember, either?

One bite was all it would take. One bite and I would become something completely not myself. I stared at the curtain again, imagining my skin becoming the same shade of white. Imagining being just as deadly, just as capable of the destruction as the ones who would try to create me were.

But I would be able to kill them then. Jasper had said the only way I could kill a vampire was to be a vampire myself. If worse came to worse…

No. I couldn't even let myself imagine that anymore. It was too dark of a thought, too uncomfortable for me to even consider.

Alice sprang to her feet. "Something's changed," she said.

 **V**

Alice's new vision – of a ballet studio potentially down the street from Bella's mom's house in Phoenix – brought a new wave of anxiety through the hotel suite. Bella left a frantic message to her mom telling her not to go home. I was happy she had the opportunity to protect her mom, and even more envious.

In the span of a dark ten minutes, I was envious of Bella Swan to the point of rage. How did she have everything so easily? So freely? She had everything I couldn't. She had a life, a family, a love –

I forced the darkness down, as deep as I could push it. Keeping Bella's happiness intact was what I wanted more than anything. It was what I wanted for everyone in my life. I tried to tell myself being as jealous as I was had to mean I was succeeding. Things were going the way I wanted them to. I was still in control.

Me, in control. That was more laughable and less plausible than vampires being real.

All I could actually do was wait for the next move. Then react.

Hours passed. Bella and I slept restlessly on the couch. I would startle awake every few minutes when James or a faceless monster would charge at me in a dream, or when my mom's scream rang in my ears. When I did, a ribbon of comfort, smooth as silk, would greet me and tuck me back into sleep.

When I finally pulled myself into total consciousness, I found Alice sketching at the small table and chairs set near the front door. Jasper sat across from her, watching. Bella shifted beside me and stood. Jasper glanced at her, then at me. When our eyes met, he jerked his head for me to join them. I trailed after Bella, looking over her shoulder at Alice's latest drawing. It looked like the setup of a living room.

"The phone goes there," Bella said, pointing at the paper.

I froze.

"That's my mother's house."

Then I started shaking. I stared at Bella, my eyes wide, as she folded her arms across her chest and dug her fingers into her arms. Looking helpless. Powerless. Oh God, he couldn't go after her mom too!

My heart pounded in my ears. The room began to slip out of focus. "No," I whispered. "No, no, no, no, no, no –"

I was yanked down into Jasper's lap and swaddled in calm. "Breathe, Blaire," he whispered, cradling me into him with one arm while he reached out to touch Bella's arm with his free hand. I felt so bad for him – how he was having to work overtime to calm the panic of two nearly hysterical people.

Hadn't James and the woman done enough? I would do whatever they asked at this point, I would trade _anything_ for everyone to be okay.

"How do I fix this?" I whispered. "They're going after _everyone_ now! I – I have to do something –"

"We're doing everything we can," Jasper murmured. I jumped when his lips brushed against my temple.

But I shook my head, "There has to be more."

Jasper said nothing.

I forced myself away from him, despite the safety I felt whenever he touched me. Security was steadily becoming a finite resource for me. I knew it was only a matter of time before it would finally run out. Then what would I do?

"We need to ambush him," I said. "We know he's here and he's closing in. We can meet him and end this."

Jasper stared at me evenly. "Are you sure this is something you still want?" he asked.

Was he serious? Didn't he understand this was the only way I would ever be able to live again? "Yes," I said.

"No," Bella said, pleaded really. "Blaire, you _can't_."

"How much longer do you want this to drag out?" I demanded. "The Cullens can't guard everyone we know forever. We have an opportunity and we should take it. As soon as we get you out of the way, Jasper and I can finish it –"

"Do you know how crazy you sound right now?" Bella snapped. "After everything that's happened, you still think you can do this?"

Beyond a doubt. The hatred fluttering in my chest told me as much.

"Yes," I replied.

She gaped at me. "Blaire, what the hell. These – These are _vampires_. You heard Alice! The tracker is stronger, faster, smarter than us. You can't hope to beat him! You should be coming with me, where it's safe –"

" _Nowhere is safe_!" I cried, my throat closing in tight, pinching my voice. It was another exclamation that made everyone go quiet. Bella's mouth shut with an audible _clack_. "You saw what happened to my – my – my – When we thought we could outrun them. I've been trying to dodge them this whole time and they're tired of it. _I'm_ tired of it. What will they do next, when they find out I'm not in Arizona? _Who_ will they hurt next?"

She didn't understand. I was trapped, I always was.

"Why don't you get that?" I pressed on. "Why are you willingly putting yourself in this kind of danger? If you hadn't been there, if you hadn't been with _him_ , you could be safe right now. Is he even _worth this_?"

She stared at me like I physically slapped her: eyes wide, watering, mouth forming a thin line as she settled into a glare. "Always," she said, breathlessly, fiercely.

"Then you're an idiot," I snapped.

She reeled back then, spinning on her heel to disappear into the room. She slammed the door behind her.

Sighing, I slumped into the chair across from Jasper. "She has a choice," I said, waving my hand at the closed door.

"So do you," he replied evenly. I frowned at him. "You always have. You still do. You're both too stubborn to realize that, though."

I folded my arms across my chest and scoffed.

 **V**

* * *

Can you tell that my favorite ship dynamic is when the fiery, short-tempered, violent one gets with the cool, calm, even more violent one?

Also, if you guys enjoy this story and my writing, I recently set up a ko-fi account (essentially an online tip jar) if you guys would like to support me! The link is ko-fi dot com slash twitchwalkertexasranger. This information can also be found on my profile!


	39. CALL TO ACTION

THIS IS THE CHAPTER THIS IS THE CHAPTER THIS IS THE CHAPTER THIS IS THE CHAPTER.

THIS IS THE CHAPTER THAT'S MY FAVORITE.

I HOPE IT'S YOUR FAVORITE (or like top five I'm not picky) TOO.

ENJOY.

* * *

 **37\. CALL TO ACTION**

The three hours after were filled filled with nothing but silence. I spent it sprawled across the couch watching muted _Golden Girls_ reruns.

Then Alice spoke. "They've gotten to the airport. They should be here in a few hours."

They being the rest of the Cullens. They were coming to Arizona to regroup, and take Bella somewhere else to protect her.

I would stay with Jasper and Alice, and take James out once and for all.

Jasper, who had been sitting at the table, rose to his feet. "I'll check out. We can move somewhere closer to Bella's mother's house from here once Bella leaves."

I nodded from my place on the couch, glancing at the closed bedroom door – not for the first time. I hated that Bella and I were at such odds. I was going through the worst time of my life, and I felt like I had no one to talk to who could fully understand like she could. But maybe we didn't fully understand each other, because we felt so differently about the vampires in our lives…

Bella finally stepped out of the room shortly after Jasper left.

"They're just boarding their plane," Alice announced to both of us. "They'll land at nine-forty-five."

Bella's shoulders drooped, and she let out a low breath. Like a sigh of _relief_. Then, "Where's Jasper?" she asked.

"Checking out," I said.

"We're relocating closer to your mother's house," Alice explained.

Bella frowned, finally looking at me. "All of you?"

I nodded, which made her frown deepen.

Then the phone rang again.

"Hello?" Alice answered. "No, she's right here."

She held the phone out to Bella, mouthing, _Your mother_.

Such a simple thing to say, but it struck me in my chest like the thunder over the clearing where the Cullens played baseball. I was breathless, my eyes watered, at the sight of Bella talking her phone. To her mom.

My heart hammered as her fingers enclosed over the plastic –

 ** _B'S MOM_**

Tires screeching, phone clattering –

 _CRASH!_

Screaming.

 _Crack!_

My fingers curled tightly into the upholstery of the couch.

Help me…

"Blaire?"

I jumped, nearly smacking into Alice when I whirled around to face her. "What?" I snapped.

She frowned at me. "Bella called you from the room. Didn't you hear her?"

I pressed my hand into my chest as I stood up, sighing. "No," I said, making my way to the bedroom, its door closed again. "I was… just thinking."

I didn't look back at her, my heart still racing, as I slipped into the suite's bedroom and closed the door behind me.

Bella stood in front of the window, holding the phone to her ear. Talking to her mom. Because she could still do that. The room spun as I stepped up to her, swallowing past an intense rush of sickening envy I thought I'd put in check. "Hey, Alice said you –"

Bella spun around, and my heart dropped.

Her eyes were wide and red-rimmed. Her teeth dug into her bottom lip, biting so hard I was worried she was going to make it bleed. With a shaking hand, she slowly passed me the phone.

Something was wrong. I snatched the phone out of her hand and held it to my ear. "Hello?"

" _Sweet Blaire_ ," a male voice that definitely _wasn't_ Bella's mom purred. " _Don't say anything until I tell you so, understand?_ "

I went still.

Bella covered her mouth with her hand, trying to smother her panicked breathing.

The chuckle flowing through the phone's speaker set the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. " _That's it_ ," James approved. I hated it. " _You always were a fast learner. I'm sure you've put the pieces together by now, given your last phone call._ "

I ground my teeth together. I tried to keep my breaths even as the first tears traced down my cheeks. He wouldn't hear me cry.

" _Say, 'Everything is fine. Bella and I are safe.' Now please._ "

"Everything's fine," I parroted, forcing my voice to stay level. "Bella and I are fine."

He hummed. " _At least you're a little better of an actress than your friend._ "

"What do you _want_?" I practically growled out.

" _No, Blaire, that wasn't part of the script_ ," James said, his tone hardening. Bella flailed, a mess of arms as she tried to get me to stop. To _wait_. I could practically hear her begging me through her stare. " _You know what happened the last time you didn't stick to the rules._ "

I wanted to chuck the phone across the room, I wanted to tell him I _would_ kill him for this, and everything else, but Bella's _eyes_ and what I knew _he_ had in his grasp forced me into a corner. I sighed.

" _Blaire, do you think you could do a favor for me?_ "

I stayed quiet.

After a beat of silence, James said, " _Waiting for me to tell you if you can say yes or no? You have my permission now, Blaire._ "

I'd never hated the sound of my name more. "Yes."

" _I want you and your friend to get away from your bodyguards. Your friend says it's possible, but it would probably be easier on her if you escorted her, don't you think? Answer yes or no._ "

He wanted us to face him. Alone. Jasper wouldn't be there to help me. No one would.

"Yes."

" _I thought so. You're quite crafty when you want to be. Bella will be able to give you further direction after you manage that. Now I know Victoria doesn't approve, but I actually like how you've changed our game, Blaire. You made it more interesting. I think I'll take credit for bringing that out of you._ "

I wanted to scream.

" _As a reward, if you follow the rest of my directions, I'll let your human friend and her mother live. How does that sound? Say, 'Yes. Thank you.' Now._ "

"Yes, thank you," I said. The words were hollow.

" _I know you mean them_ ," James said. " _Or that you will, once everything is done. Now pass the phone back to Bella, please – but know, if you bring anyone along, if you try to change the game again, our next retaliation will make your mother's death seem like a reprieve._ "

I shoved the phone back in Bella's direction and had to physically restrain myself from punching the closest wall. Instead I sunk to my knees on the floor, shoving my fingers through my hair. Trying to ground myself even though I was shattering.

"Thank you, Mom," Bella said, her voice wobbling. "I love you, Mom. I'll see you soon."

Bella crouched in front of me. "Bee –"

I held a finger up. I needed a minute. I sucked in sharp breaths, forcing my panic into a box and shoving it down. I needed to _focus_. I could still save Bella and her mom. I could still do this.

And even if I couldn't, I had to.

Bella had gotten up, then she came back, shoving a notepad of hotel stationary in my face.

 _Don't do this_ , it read in messy scrawl. _He'll KILL you._

Yes, he would. And he would do so much more than that. Slowly, I reached out and took the paper and pen from her trembling hands.

 _I won't let him hurt you the way he hurt me_ , I wrote.

"B –" Bella choked my name back. Tears trickled down her high cheekbones, stopping at the fingers she pressed over her mouth. She shook her head violently, looking every bit like the little girl I'd known her as after she'd been taunted by a bigger kid at the McDonald's jungle gym. And I felt the same in this moment as I did then: angry, ready to step up to her defense, because we were best friends. More than anything, I wanted her to be happy.

 _I can go alone_ , she'd written back. _Don't do this because of me._

I took the pen and notepad away from her and wrote more, _He needs us BOTH, B. And even if he didn't, I'd go with you. I'd never make you go through this alone._

She threw the notepad aside and flung her arms around me. I hugged her back just as fiercely. I didn't know if it would be the last time.

Later, before we left the room, she'd written, _We'll make it through this. Together._

Though I'd nodded for her, I didn't believe it myself.

When we stepped out of the bedroom, we sat on the couch. Bella tucked herself into the armrest and I sprawled out along the couch, draping my legs over hers. We said nothing. I switched from _Golden Girls_ to _Full House_.

 _Smack!_

We both turned toward Alice standing across the room. She braced herself on the table, gripping its edges with both hands. "Alice?" Bella called, worriedly.

I already pivoted off of the couch and was on my feet, striding to her. Her eyes were blank.

"Alice!" Jasper had been at the door at one second, then stood behind her in the next, gently freeing her hands from the table. I glanced up at the door just as it swung shut. "What is it?"

But Alice reeled on me. "Blaire," she said.

Shit. Had mine and Bella's plan been ruined already? She could see the _future_ , for crying out loud! How were we supposed to get past them now?

But I still frowned at her, still pretended to look confused. Oblivious. I jumped when I felt Jasper's hand on my shoulder. "What?" he asked, his tone hard.

"What happened?" I asked.

Alice shook her head, quickly. "Nothing," she said, but she glanced up at Jasper as a slight shudder ran through her. She was lying.

Jasper's fingers tightened on me.

 **V**

"Alice?" Bella asked.

"Yes?" Alice answered.

"How does it work? The things that you see?"

We were in the backseat of the Mercedes again. I stared out the window, watching the interesting landscape of Bella's home state slide past us as we drove down the freeway. It was so flat, so vast, and so bright. How did she miss this? It was so open here. The only green things I saw were dark olive cacti. It was so bare.

There was nowhere to hide.

"Edward said it wasn't definite…" Bella went on, "that things change?"

I knew she was trying to sound conversational, casual, when she was actually digging. She would get the information we needed in order to find out how we could maneuver out of Alice and Jasper's guard.

A refreshing wave of calm settled in the car. I glanced up at the source of it, as I had been since we got in the car. I would study the curls in his hair, or the way the side of his neck sloped into his broad shoulder, or how one of his hands rested casually on the steering wheel.

As I came to terms with not surviving the next twenty-four hours, I regretted not doing anything about Jasper Whitlock, any mixed emotions I held for him be-damned.

"Yes, things change…" Alice said. "Some things are more certain than others… like the weather. Very rarely, it's people. People are usually always harder. I only see the course they're on while they're on it. Once they change their minds – make a new decision, no matter how small – the whole future shifts."

But did that mean she already saw Bella and I run away? We'd already decided in the hotel room. That was it, we were _screwed_.

"So you couldn't see James in Phoenix until he decided to come here," Bella clarified.

Or why she couldn't see Victoria kill my mom. Because it'd been a sporadic move, unthought of until that very moment.

Another wave of calm brushed against me, specifically. I looked at Jasper's face in the rearview mirror. He looked back, an unreadable look in his expression. I'd caught him looking at me more than once since we left the hotel, and he never immediately looked away.

"Yes," Alice said, cautiously.

Okay. So she _hadn't_ seen us yet. Just because we made our decision didn't mean we decided to _act_ on it yet.

To get away, Bella and I would have to act quickly.

 _You're quite crafty when you want to be…_

 _I think I'll take credit for bringing that out of you…_

I barely paid attention when Jasper parked at the airport. I was too busy memorizing the way we came into the building, studying the cabs and shuttle buses lining a strip of road just before we walked inside. We were immersed among people as soon as we walked in, and I glanced up at Jasper. He appeared perfectly composed, but his eyes were darker than Alice's. He needed three elk a _week_ to satisfy his thirst. How many days had passed…?

He would be distracted, and I hated the relief I felt from that fact.

We sat at a row of chairs next to the metal detectors, Jasper's arm slung over the back of my seat. I could feel _some_ kind of tension practically radiating off of him, a disturbing mix of anticipation and desperation. "What's wrong?" I murmured to him, while Bella took out an envelope from her pocket and handed it to Alice.

Jasper looked down at me, frowning. For someone who struggled with his bloodlust, he seemed to have no problems keeping himself so close to me lately. I could hardly focus on that, though, when I felt my heart skip a beat from his anxiety alone. "I'm sorry," he said, obviously knowing the affect he had on me. "I'm worried."

That made two of us.

I didn't know what to say. Jasper didn't seem to know, either. Finally, I gave up. I scooted closer to Jasper, as close as I could with a metal armrest separating us and leaned my head against his shoulder. Jasper's arm dropped heavily along my back, and he pulled me closer, holding me in place beside him. It was strange to find such comfort when his entire form seemed to be built from granite.

Alice suggested breakfast – multiple times – but Bella held her off. I was grateful. Balancing Jasper's nerves and my own terror made my stomach a jittery mess. Food sounded disastrous.

We all watched the arrival board, watched the flight from Seattle scaling ever upward to the top. My stomach flipped when the arrival time changed to ten minutes ahead of schedule. What were we waiting on –

"We should eat now," Bella said. I slowly untangled myself from Jasper and stood up with her.

Alice was already on her feet. "I'll go with you."

"Do you mind if Jasper comes instead?" Bella asked, maybe a little too quickly. "I'm feeling a little…"

Jasper was already on his feet, beside me, his arm back in place over my shoulders. I should have been startled at such a change, where we'd first been unable to look each other in the eye and now we were practically glued to each others' sides, but it felt natural to be so close to him. Would it have always been like this, so easy, if I hadn't fought it for so long?

I suddenly regretted not even _trying_ with Jasper Whitlock.

Bella walked beside us, and we both scanned the cafés dotting along terminal's long walls. An unspoken plan seemed to form between us. While James had asked me to be her escort for her mission, Bella was clearly going to be mine. She knew this airport better than me, and I relied on her to make our escape.

"Oh," Bella suddenly said, stopping us all short. I followed her gaze, my heartrate spiking at a doorway to the women's restroom she had her eyes on. She glanced past me and up at Jasper. "Do you mind? I'll just be a moment."

"I'll be right here," he said. Bella darted in the room, letting the door swing shut behind her.

This was it.

"I should probably go too," I said, slowly slipping away from him. I intended to go straight to that door, but found myself moving too slow, lingering. Jasper noticed too. I didn't want to leave him yet. I just wanted to talk to him, just one more time.

"You must be glad to get this over with," I said, attempting humor. "It has to be tiring, babysitting humans."

Jasper didn't seem to find it funny. "After everything, do you really think you mean so little to me?"

My wavering smile fell. "No."

It was one of the few things I was certain of, and it scared me. Jasper and I had entertained a delicate balance on the edge of a cliff. We always peered over the edge and at the abyss below, but we were never brave enough to jump. Never brave enough to admit where we even stood. We both knew of the thing that existed between us, pulling us toward one another –

A pull.

"You haven't told me everything," I whispered, barely having the air to breathe, let alone speak.

"No." Jasper's answering smile was sad. "I haven't."

My stomach quivered and dropped, like I was on a rollercoaster. I tensed at the sensation, at my heart pounding hard in my chest, at desperation. It was his, not mine.

"I don't think I've ever thanked you," I admitted. His brows rose, his surprise stilting the desperation still threatening to pull me under. "For everything you've done for me."

"Why do you say it like you're saying goodbye?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," I shrugged, glancing away from him. "Maybe I'm trying to say it like I'm saying hello."

It wasn't the right place. It sure as hell wasn't the right time. But I surged to the tips of my toes anyway, held the side of Jasper's face in my hand, and leaned forward to kiss his cheek. His skin was smooth and cool under my lips, but fire raged through me at the sensation.

I rocked back on my heels, taking in Jasper's face in the moment. Stock still, eyes blown, staring at me like I was the only person in the world.

Why did it have to be like this?

Despite the weight of the world pressing down at my shoulders, I could smile. "Sorry," I breathed, because I was sorry for so, so many things, before shoving my way into the restroom.

Bella was on the other side. She grabbed my arm and yanked me through an exit on the other side.

 **V**

* * *

You can't hear it but I'm totally screaming, "Well?! WELL?!" at the top of my lungs while typing this out.

"ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?!"

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	40. THE AMENDMENT

FIRST OF ALL, I want to give a special shoutout to **bluefrost15** , who donated to my ko-fi! Thank you so much for your support, bluefrost15! It truly means the world to me! This chapter is actually, legitimately, dedicated to you because _you_ changed a major plot-point in RAVAGE. Yes, you did! How rad are you?! Super rad, tbh. I won't get super emotional on you but you absolutely made my day and I may or may not have cried at your show of support when I woke up to the notification. You've made a difference in my relationship to writing today, and I hope I can repay you by creating more content for you to enjoy!

So let's talk about that plot-point.

It's crazy. I changed this chapter title to THE AMENDMENT because it's a legitimate amendment.

Wow.

Crazy.

Look at the author's notes below to find out how you can learn more!

 **TRIGGER WARNINGS**

 _violence_

 _gore_

 _torture_

* * *

 **38\. THE** **AMENDMENT**

We ran.

We charged past the luggage carousels, skidding around a block of security guards, and through the exit. I had to grab Bella by the hood of her jacket and yank her back just before she could run right into a set of sliding glass doors. Then we were out. We were free.

I squinted past the brightness of morning desert sun as Bella scoured the strip of road that had been laden with cabs and shuttles when we first got here. It was empty now, and made my stomach twist with my own desperation. I whirled around to face the doors we walked through, almost waiting for Jasper to step through them. What if he did? What if we couldn't get away?

"Wait!" Bella suddenly shouted. I turned in time as she started flagging me down to a shuttle bus with a logo for the Hyatt on the side. It was the only thing in sight. I ran after her, hoping the driver would let us on.

"This is a shuttle to the Hyatt," the driver said after opening the doors. Bella practically lunged up the steps, and I was close behind her.

"Yes," she breathed, "that's where we're going."

He looked like he wanted to ask more, but when he glanced me up and down, he startled and looked straight ahead. I glanced down too.

Waylon's gun was holstered to my hip, and it'd been exposed when the side of Jasper's jacket was pushed back by the narrow railing of the shuttle's steps. I quickly pulled the jacket in place and followed Bella further into the bus.

She chose a seat furthest away from the other passengers, anxiously watching the bus drive away from the airport. It moved too slowly for me. But I watched with her anyway, waiting for Jasper to burst out from the airport, wild and monstrous because he realized he'd been had. I glanced at Bella, frowning when I saw her eyes glassy with tears. "It's going to be all right," I murmured.

She nodded quickly. "I just... I can't help but imagine him there. Waiting."

Her voice cracked. I leaned against her, my thoughts in a whirl about _him_. "You'll see him soon," I promised.

"But you don't want that," she muttered. "It's probably killing you, that you can't get your way."

I frowned.

"You two are a lot alike," she admitted. "Headstrong. Temperamental as anything. It's probably why you can't stand each other. But you both always want what's best for me, even if it drives me insane sometimes. I couldn't ask for better people to love me."

The bus hit the highway, forcing me to look at the expanse of desert so I couldn't look at my best friend. I didn't want to think about how similar I was to Edward Cullen. "But...?" I pressed, because there was a point to Bella's rambling.

"But..." Bella relented with a sigh, "I wish you both would let me choose what I know is best for me. It's him, Blaire. It's always been him, it'll always be him. He's it for me."

He was _it_. I could hardly believe the worlds, so passionate, because they were coming from _Bella_. My sweet friend, shy, honest to a fault, so practical. All of that had flown out the window for _him_. I figured there had to be a good reason why, I _hoped_ there was. Still... "Then I hope we end up being completely different," I admitted.

"Why?" Bella asked.

"Because I want him to be able to keep you and your family safe," I said. "I don't want him to fail the way I am."

"You're _not_ failing, Blaire," she said, leaning back into me. "You're not."

But I was. The only thing I was succeeding at was falling right into James's trap. Every mile put me closer to him. To an end I wasn't ready to face.

I was going to die today.

I curled into the seat and held my hands close to my chest to ease ragged, soul-shredding breaths. Bella tried to calm me, but I was too far gone. I had what I was sure was a panic attack for the rest of the drive. If anyone noticed, they didn't say anything.

As soon as we reached the Hyatt, we sprinted for the first cab we could find. I stumbled, winded from the drive. We tripped over each other to get inside the backseat, and Bella fired off her mom's address in the most breathless yet authoritative tone I'd ever heard her use. "We need to get there as soon as possible."

"That's all the way in Scottsdale," the cabbie practically moaned.

Before I could ask if he was serious, Bella fished for something in her pocket, then flung a few bills over his seat. "Will that be enough?" she demanded.

He grappled at the bills. "Uh, sure, ladies, no problem."

 **V**

"Hey, what was that number?" the cabbie asked after a deathly silent twenty-minute drive.

Twenty minutes where I forced myself to keep it together. Twenty minutes where I tried to make peace with what was going to happen next. Twenty minutes of me scrambling to figure out if I had any final affairs that had to be sorted through.

But nineteen of those twenty minutes were spent drowning in mind-numbing terror.

"Fifty-eight twenty-one," Bella answered, thickly. I glanced at her. She looked on the verge of tears, but she was holding them back. She understood now wasn't the time to cry. There was still work to be done.

It was why I couldn't give in to my panic, either. There was still work to be done.

"Here we are, then," he said, pulling up to the house Bella grew up in.

"Thank you," Bella murmured before tipping out of the car. I followed suit, standing beside her on the sidewalk, pulling myself together.

I'd never been to Arizona, so I'd never seen where my friend grew up when she wasn't with me in Forks. Her house was pleasant, quaint, with a large tree off to the side and not many other plants. I had to squint at it through the brightness of the sun when it bounced off the white sidewalk underneath us. The heat seeped into Jasper's jacket immediately, baking me.

Bella went for the door, but I grabbed her shoulder before she could get ahead of me. I stepped in front of her, pushing the side of Jasper's jacket aside so I could pull out Waylon's gun. I racked it. The _clack-clack_ sound of it echoed through her empty street.

"He won't be here," Bella said. "He said he wanted this to be the starting point."

Like a fucked up scavenger hunt. I narrowed my eyes. "I'd rather be safe than sorry."

Then we moved to the house. I hovered at the front door while Bella grabbed a spare key and unlocked it.

The house was dark, quiet, and it smelled like incense. It was dated, as the outside had looked, but I could see a young Bella growing up here, I could imagine how the old house somehow fit her old soul. Bella rested her hand on my shoulder, using me as a shield as she led me to the kitchen. She finally turned on a light when we reached it. I whirled, holding the gun steady as I took in the lit space, and the shadows beyond.

Bella grabbed her home phone off the wall and typed in a ten-digit number written on a whiteboard stuck to her fridge. I stood at her back, intent, scanning the house for any sign of movement.

" _Hello, Bella_ ," James answered too fucking casually over the speaker. It was like nails on a chalkboard to my ears. " _That was very quick. I'm impressed. Is Blaire with you?_ "

"Where's Bella's mom?" I demanded.

" _Hello, Blaire_ ," he said. " _She's perfectly fine. After all, I have no quarrel with her. Unless you decided to change the rules again, and it's not just the two of you, of course._ "

"Of course," I mimicked dryly.

" _Very good_ ," he approved. " _Now, do you know the ballet studio just around the corner from your home, Bella?_ "

I now knew why that studio was so special now.

"Yes," Bella said. "I know how to get there."

" _Good. I thought it would be the perfect place to stage Blaire's graduation. Are you excited, Blaire?_ "

The ballet studio I merely glanced at in Alice's sketches was where I was going to die. I shivered, but said nothing.

Bella hung up. "Blaire –"

No. No, I couldn't panic. Not now. Not when Bella and her mother were depending on me. I wouldn't let anyone else die because of me. I shoved the gun back in my holster and surged for the front door. We started running again.

Bella was slow – so painfully slow. I tried to remind myself that I spent my entire life conditioning to run long distances, and do it quickly, and Bella hadn't. I tried not to get frustrated when she tripped over herself, almost fell until I caught her, and practically towed her along behind me. I just wanted to get there.

I wanted this to end so I could stop the terror gnawing at every corner of my mind.

It had to end.

"Just – Just another street now," Bella huffed. At least she was determined.

The sun was too hot. I was practically sweltering under Jasper's jacket, but I couldn't imagine taking it off. I wanted a piece of him, even if it was as simple as his jacket, to take with me into that ballet studio. I wanted to wear it and imagine he was there – my security, my armor.

I had so many regrets.

The studio was made up of the same bright concrete as the other buildings we'd passed. It was closed, the blinds drawn, and the entire structure was set apart from the other buildings around it. It was the perfect place to stage a ransom. A murder.

I was going to die in that shitty building. What a surreal thing to realize.

Bella stumbled to a stop, gasping for air, while I merely breathed beside her. My heart raced in my chest, willing me to keep running, to finish it all before the fear of finality could eat me alive, but I waited for her to catch her breath.

This was worth it. It had to be. Bella would live through this, she would have her mother, she would have her life. So would her dad. So would mine… That was worth it.

"Um…" I started, quickly cutting myself off before my voice could crack. My thoughts were wild with last wishes. "Tell my dad I love him. Tell him that – that I was sorry I was so mean. I forgive him."

Bella straightened up. "I – I promise," she breathed.

I yanked out my uncle's gun again. I imagined him beside me, watching me like that pastor at his funeral said, holding a rifle like he had that night before I went to the beach. Grim. Determined.

It had been for me.

Just like this was for him.

I blinked the tears away and expelled a short breath before leading the way. Bella opened the door for me. It swung open easily.

The dance studio's lobby was dark and cool, chilling the sweat on the back of my neck. Bella put her hand on my shoulder again, hovering behind me. Everything was dark in the studio except for a big, open room to the right. I glared at it.

" _Bella? Bella?_ " a panicky woman's voice called out. It echoed off the empty walls.

"Mom," Bella breathed. She pushed past me and sprinted to the lit room.

I lunged after her. "Bee, wait!"

" _Bella, you scared me! Don't you ever do that to me again!_ " the voice continued as I followed her into the room. It opened into a massive space with high ceilings, and mirrors everywhere.

Mirrors that showed me _me_. A panicked girl swallowed up by a large leather jacket, holding a gun with shaking hands, bright ginger hair wild and scraggly. She looked so different from the happy little girl that sat on her uncle's shoulders. Laughter came from somewhere behind me.

I saw it then: Bella, staring at a TV screen where a home video played. A younger Bella, gangly and growing into herself, frowned as her hair was tousled. Then it cut to another video, of another Bella flailing at the edge of a large dock. " _Bella? Bella?_ " The woman's voice, I assumed belonged to Bella's mom, called out in fear. But that was the only woman speaking, the only version of Bella's mom in this room.

I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. The TV screen went blue. I tracked the movement.

He stood at the only other door in the room – at the back exit. He smiled. Then he took a step forward.

I grabbed Bella and hauled her behind me, pointing the gun at James as he stepped ever closer. He put the remote down next to the VCR and TV, all set on a table hugging the wall opposite of the mirrors. It forced me to notice my uncle's bomber jacket laying next to them. It was just another reminder of what I was here for. "Sorry about that," he said, "but isn't it better that her mother didn't have to be involved in all this? After all, one was enough."

He'd played us.

He'd played _me_.

But… it was a relief. Bella was the only person I had to worry about now. Everyone else was still safe. I was… I was finally getting traction in all of this. The end was so much closer now. It was a strange, surreal moment, one that actually relaxed me. It took me back to a conversation I had with Alice in Jasper's room, where she told me that some things were just inevitable. That they would all happen and end just the same, one way or another.

Maybe this was inevitable.

James cocked his head to the side. "You both don't seem angry that I tricked you, especially you, Blaire. I'm surprised. You hate when people keep you out of the loop."

"I'll adjust," I said. "You can let Bella go, now. I'm not going anywhere."

A smile ghosted along his mouth. "How odd. You really mean it."

Yes. Even if I was terrified, I meant it. If it meant getting a chance at Bella walking out of here, I'd take it. James's smile remained in place as he stared at me, and I regarded him just as evenly.

Then he chuckled, a soft sound that turned into a full-bodied laugh that made Bella flinch. "Yes! _Yes_ , Blaire! You see? _This_ is what endeared Victoria and I to you so. Such loyalty – You're capable of such devotion, and nobody did anything with it! Qualities like yours are far and few between. They're not to be passed over. Not when they can be molded – Not when they can be made better. And the way you just _take_ things. You're like a spring that can wind itself too tight, so neatly under pressure. But now I want to see how you'll finally, truly, _explode_ –"

 _BANG!_

The bullet knocked into his shoulder, then clattered uselessly to the ground. His eyes swept down to his arm, and he pulled the collar of his shirt back to reveal spiderweb-like cracks marring is white skin.

Even if this was all inevitable, I'd still get in a last _fuck you_.

My hands shook. My ears rang at the small explosion. The heat of the gun radiated along my fingers. "Does that answer your question?" I demanded through gritted teeth.

He grinned. Then he grabbed a handheld camera sitting on the table, turned it on, and pointed it to face us. "Not quite."

I glared at him.

He stepped forward again, closer to us. I stepped back, keeping Bella flush behind me. She curled her fingers into Jasper's jacket. "You see, I would like to rub it in, just a little bit," James explained. "Think of it as being a proud parent seeing their child graduate, or an artist watching as their creation finally takes life of its own."

"Or a serial killer in their element?" I offered.

His smile softened. "You know, Victoria hates your sense of humor, she thinks it's unsettling, but I find it quite refreshing. Wit is a true mark of cleverness, I think. I knew I was in for something different when you ran away from your home, that you were clever when you were pushed to it. I almost thought you'd disappeared until I realized you were simply masking your scent with vampires! I'll make a strategist of you yet, little fox. Is that how you charmed your mate?"

My heart dropped. There was that word. _Mate_. The one word I thought might have been more terrifying than the actual existence of _vampires_ , the one I'd been too afraid to consider since another conversation I had with Alice. Now it stood for one of the many choices I didn't have the chance to make. It brought tears to my eyes, even as I tried to hold them back.

"It will be interesting to see how he plays into all of this," James went on. "He's an absolute savage, I'll give him that. Any rational vampire would think twice before going against him. But I've worked too hard for this moment, harder than I have for any other quarry. That should honor you. It should answer any doubts you have of whether or not you'll be strong enough to make the change. Anyway, I don't think it's fair that he should have you so easily when I had to make such an effort. Do you agree?"

I decided that question was rhetorical.

"I won't let him ruin the fun." James's tone went dark. "It happened once, oh, ages ago. The one and only time my prey escaped me. You see, the vampire who was so stupidly fond of this little victim made the choice that your mate was too weak to make for you. When the old vampire knew I was after his little friend, he stole her from the asylum where he worked. I will never understand the obsession some vampires seem to form with you humans – yours included, Bella – and as soon as he freed her, he made her safe. She didn't even seem to notice the pain, poor little creature. She'd been stuck in that black hole of a cell for so long. A hundred years earlier and she would have been burnt at the stake for her visions. In the nineteen-twenties it was asylum and shock treatments. When she opened her eyes, strong with her fresh youth, it was like she'd never seen the sun before. The old vampire made her a strong new vampire, and there was no reason to touch her then." He finally stopped talking to sigh. "I destroyed the old one in vengeance."

"Alice?" Bella gasped.

Bewildered, the question bubbled out of me, "You were able to get that from… that?"

James glanced at Bella and back to me. His smile hardened. "Yes, your little friend. I was surprised to see her in the clearing. So I guess her coven ought to be able to derive some comfort from this experience. I get you, but they get her. The one victim who escaped me. Another honor, really."

He began to circle us, giving me no time to think about Alice or the other vampire we seemed to have in common. I followed James's movements, keeping the end of my gun trained on him, turning both Bella and I toward the emergency exit door.

"So far," I said, "I'm beginning to think you're actually pretty shitty at what you do. Your first favorite escaped you, I've made your game more difficult than it needed to be. Someone might think you're only good at losing."

James hummed thoughtfully. "Yes, I suppose you're right. I've learned since that first failure. She'd been a distraction, with her smell. And she did smell so delicious. I still regret I never got to taste. It's why I at least had to sample you." Then he glanced over my shoulder, at Bella. "She smelled even better than you do. Sorry – I don't mean to be offensive. You have a very nice smell. Floral, somehow…"

He took a step closer. I took a step to meet him. It made him pause.

"Let her go," I said. "This is what you wanted, wasn't it? I'm here. Just let her go, then we can get this over with."

"Blaire," Bella's voice broke, "no."

James smiled. "I suppose we should. But I've been thinking. Your first act of defiance in our game... Well, to be honest, it inspired me. I wasn't expecting it to go this way. I wasn't expecting to be so _enthralled_. It's made me decide I want to make a change of my own. An amendment, if you will."

The rage rolling through me was familiar, as was the helplessness that came with it.

James tapped the camera with his finger. "I wanted to document it so I can leave a message for your mate and his friends. Do you think he'll try to find you when all of this ends and your new life begins? What about Bella's... Edward, wasn't it? Do you think Edward would avenge her?"

"Don't," I said, fighting to push the hysteria rising within me down. "If – If you kill her, I –"

"I didn't say anything about _me_ killing her, Blaire." James's grin was wild. "A newborn's thirst is insatiable. For the first eleven to twelve months, they're blinded by it. They'll slaughter anything and everything with a pulse..."

My eyes widened. Me. When he would change _me_ , he would force me to kill her.

 _BANG!_

"Bella _run_!" I screeched over the echo of the gunshot.

I didn't know if the bullet hit James or not. Bella started sprinting for the exit, but he was already there, slamming his arm into her chest, sending her back into the mirrored wall. I hoarse cry of terror slipped out of me, drowned by shattering glass. I ran across the room, dropping to my knees at her side. "Bella, Bella!" I said, reaching for her with shaking fingers. She blinked into focus, eyes fluttering.

"That was a very nice effect," James approved from across the room. He crushed small shards of glass that had skidded his way under his bare feet. "I thought this room would be visually dramatic for my little film. That's why I picked this place to meet you. It's perfect, isn't it?"

Bella's eyes finally settled on my face, much to my relief. She gasped, reaching for me. I grabbed her and pulled her up. "Go, run," I whispered.

"She won't make it far," James promised.

I lunged up to my feet and turned to James as he began to stride forward. I charged him –

Then I sailed backwards through the air, and hit the concrete wall opposite of Bella. My head cracked painfully against it as I slid to the ground. The world spun.

"Now, now, Blaire, wait your turn," James said easily.

He was blurry, everything was blurry, and sideways as he walked to Bella. I struggled to my feet, letting Jasper's jacket slip from me so I could lunge for Waylon's gun. It had fallen out of my hands when he threw me. "Hey!" I shouted, and fired.

James whipped around, and I was able to focus on his face just as he pulled back his lips to snarl.

I shot him again.

The bullet bounced off his chest, but it left a nice divot in its place that pushed his shirt inwards.

"Leave her alone!" I screamed. My head pounded, my knees shook, and my ears rang with the resounding echoes of gunshots.

He swept toward me again. I barely saw the bottom of his foot before it struck my chest, breaking, _crushing_ important things inside. I fell back onto the floor hard, breathless but coughing anyway. I tasted something metallic on my tongue. It dribbled to the back of my throat. I rolled over on my side, hacking, spitting it out on the hardwood floors beneath me. Blood.

James stared at me, hard. As I focused, I realized he was staring at the droplets of blood on the floor, then where I felt it trickling down my chin.

"I – I'm not done," I wheezed, forcing myself to my feet.

He sighed, loudly. "That's your most annoying fault," he said. "You never know when you should be."

I stood –

Then I was on the other side of the room, my back hitting something else. Something that shattered. Something that _cut_. I cried out at the searing pain shooting from my side as I landed on my hands and knees in a littering of glinting glass. I coughed again, spitting out more blood, before I looked at my side.

There was a shard of glass there, protruding from me. Blood dribbled freely from around it. Another important thing had been compromised. The world crawled. Every time I breathed, something inside me rattled.

 _Snap!_

Bella screamed.

Horror washed through me. No. No, not again. The words thrummed through me with every beat of my heart as it failed in my chest. Not again. Not again. Not again. Not again. Not _again_!

"Would you like to rethink your last request?" James asked, distantly.

I huffed and tried to stand, but my legs gave out on me. I could barely feel anything anymore. I was fading.

I saw memories, my memories, as they played in tandem with the current world around me: Bella and I playing in the woods as children, doing homework with her, Bella scrambling away from James, us sitting at the dinner table with her dad and my uncle and my mom, looking out the open window of Bella's truck, James asking Bella serene questions as he toed one of her legs bent at an awkward angle, Jasper Whitlock winking at me in the school parking lot...

"Look at her, Blaire!" James crowed. "Look at your _feast_!"

A soccer ball rolling through the grass…

Bella screamed. She sounded like my mother's scream.

I jolted. This wasn't done. My best friend still needed me.

When I blinked, everything cleared. I spied the black of Waylon's gun only a yard away.

I crawled for it on my hands and knees, pushing past the agony of every move. I could end this. I _would_ end it.

"You know you're going to die. Would it comfort you if Edward avenged you?" James asked.

"No!" Bella cried. "No, Edward, _don't_ –"

I grabbed it, just as glass shattered behind me.

I flailed around. My heart flew up to my throat when I saw Bella, bleeding, on the floor, unmoving. The tracker stood over her.

This would end here.

I surged forward, half-stumbling, half-faint, all determination, all screaming. I lunged for James –

He caught me, easily. His fingers knotted into the hair at the back of my head, twisting it, sending pain burning through my scalp. I growled as he wrenched it backward, forcing me on my knees. I clutched at his wrist, my nails hopelessly scrabbling against him.

"I fucking _dare_ you to change me," I snarled, breathless. "Because I _swear_ , when I wake up, you'll have the monster you wanted. It'll be the thing that _ends you_."

He blinked down at me. I got to watch _something_ wash across his face – an expression that I didn't understand –

"I can't wait to meet it."

He yanked me up to my feet, tearing my hair, making me scream –

I pulled Waylon's gun up, shoved it into James's neck, and pulled the trigger.

 _BANG!_

Black.

Then there was fire.

 **V**

* * *

My small disaster child came thruuuuuuu to ruin your life.

ilysm, Bee~

Wow, what a long chapter. It's almost like I started off with something else and HAD TO ADD IN MORE STUFF BASED OFF OF _AN AMENDMENT_.

 **QUICK ANNOUNCEMENT**

If you guys enjoy this story and my writing, I recently set up a ko-fi account (essentially an online tip jar) so you guys have the option to support me and the continued creation of RAVAGE. Please consider donating if you have extra change and want to help your local Texas Ranger out. I use this account to post excerpts of upcoming chapters, as well as to upload pictures of my favorite comments. So you should check it out just to see if your comment happens to be up there.

The link is ko-fi dot com slash twitchwalkertexasranger

I would also love to host a Q&A, so if you guys have any questions related to this story or in general, feel free to ask them in the comments and I'll respond to them on my ko-fi page. _Maybe someone can ask what I was originally going to write instead of the amendment...?_


	41. A COERCION

HEY. This is a CALL OUT FOR **TUMBLR USER READINGISLOVING**. Yeah, that's right, you've been found out. Why didn't you tell me you made such a gorgeous banner for RAVAGE? Why?! Instead I had to track it down after the lovely **TalkingChaos** (thanks for letting me know!) mentioned they found my story through your Tumblr recommendation!

 _I'M CALLING YOU OUT TO THANK YOU._

Seriously, the banner looks dope. I have another tab open while I write these author notes so I can stare at it. Who'd you use as Blaire's face-claim? Because the "no bullshit" face is strong in this one. Also, Jasper in the baseball hat with that _HEAD TILT?_ Who gave him permission? Everyone who has a tumblr or not should look it up. I still haven't stopped looking at it btw. Someone help me. It's mesmerizing. The banner is a GIF. Blaire and Jasper _MOVE_. It's sorcery. I can't even. Wow. Still amazed.

Anyways, idk if y'all are ready for this chapter. I'm not even ready.

In the meantime, I'm going to keep looking at the banner made by **READINGISLOVING on Tumblr**. Thank you again! You made my day!

If anyone else does stuff like this, I wanna know about it. Please don't be shy!

...

PLEASE. I have a soul-deep desire to know that people actually like this story as much as I do.

( _A_ _lso, to everyone letting me know that I didn't post a chapter yesterday, you're right! I posted a playlist! It's on chapter 2_ )

* * *

 **39\. A** **COERCION**

Burning.

Everything burned.

There was only pain.

It roared through me, burning everything in its path to ash. I was lost in it.

Lost in fire.

Lost in agony.

There was nothing else.

It was never-ending.

I was so afraid.

A roar rocked me back into consciousness, so loud I felt it in my bones. Distantly, glass shattered.

It forced me back to life. But when I tried to breathe, I immediately choked on the fire. I could barely see through it, but I forced myself to focus on the creature that shot through one of the tall windows of the dance studio. Bright sun – _burning_ sun – made me cry out in pain, but I didn't look away. Not when the figure glimmered in the light and made his blond hair seem like a halo of gold. He moved so slow, everything was moving at a crawl, so when he looked at me, his expression of horror was seared into my memory like the pain shooting through my veins.

" _Jasper_!" I shrieked.

My stomach dropped like I was falling. Panic, dread, overwhelming grief, slammed into me. It was the full weight of Jasper's desperation. I needed him. I needed him! I reached for him, but it made the burning within me flare. I screamed. " _Jasper_!"

Then I was swept up in a cold that contrasted to the fever raging through me, but the heat was still too much. Too overwhelming. I was being pulled under and into the inferno again. "Not so close," James warned, his voice so close to me it hurt my pounding ears. A strangled snarl escaped me as I pushed against his cold embrace. He kept me locked in place. "She's still quite vulnerable. I can still end her."

"Let her go!" Jasper roared.

"No," James replied. Flames surged up to my brain, pulling another nearly inhuman scream of pain from my inflamed lungs. "She's mine. If you want her, you'll have to find her."

I struggled to stay awake, but it was so hard. I was being sucked into a vacuum of darkness and pain. I couldn't take it. I couldn't keep my eyes open.

This was dying. I was dying.

I was so afraid.

" _Blaire_!"

Jasper...

 **V**

* * *

I've been listening to Billie Eilish's whole album, "WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?" writing this story. So many songs give me Blasper vibes, especially "my strange addiction." Listen to it and tell me I'm wrong.

The reason why I mention this is because I've been writing the epilogue to Eilish's song "bad guy" on repeat. You'll see why.

 **QUICK ANNOUNCEMENT**

If you guys enjoy this story and my writing, I recently set up a ko-fi account (essentially an online tip jar) so you guys have the option to support me and the continued creation of RAVAGE. Please consider donating if you have extra change and want to help your local Texas Ranger out. I use this account to post excerpts of upcoming chapters, as well as to upload pictures of my favorite comments. So you should check it out just to see if your comment happens to be up there.

The link is ko-fi dot com slash twitchwalkertexasranger

So... this is your hint to give me some quality comments that I can post! I've been stockpiling a few and once this story is complete I'm just gonna upload them all at once.


	42. EPILOGUE

Oh my gosh, we're at the final installment. I can't believe it. We finally landed this bird.

I was originally going to wait another week to post this epilogue, but didn't, because my fiancé for told me to put y'all out of your misery and give you the final chapter AND the epilogue in the same week. So you should be thanking future Mr. TwitchWalkerTexasRanger for this double-whammy! I also showed him Tumblr user **readingisloving** 's (why haven't you looked at it yet?!) banner for RAVAGE and he says I'm Tumblr famous, which is definitely untrue but I appreciate his enthusiasm!

I'm still looking at that banner btw.

Stay tuned for news in the author's notes below.

 **TRIGGER WARNINGS**

 _blood/gore_

* * *

 **EPILOGUE**

The fire was endless.

It burned away everything I ever was.

It burned away everything I ever could have been.

I tried to fight the pain. I tried to reign in my screams so I could seem stronger than I was. I just wanted to be strong. I just wanted to live through this. But whenever I tried to hold back, whenever I assumed I could conquer the pain, it responded with ten times the intensity. It made trying to beat it impossible.

I used to be so good at winning. Now the feeling began to allude me.

The fire surged on, and it carried me with it.

The fire blinded me to everything. I didn't know where I was or how I would wake up. All of my senses were consumed by the pain. Everything I touched was fire, all I saw was black, all I heard was the frantic pounding of my heart, and all I could smell and taste was the bile I kept throwing up. Like my body was purging itself.

It would never end…

… until it did.

In increments. It freed my fingers and toes first, pulling itself up my arms and legs, wrapping a fist around my core and tightening it. I choked on it, spasmed as my heart just _stopped beating_.

It was coming. The end was coming.

Emptiness settled in my chest like a dead weight, unsettling and cold. The fire crept up and laced itself around my throat where it remained. And it _raged_.

"It's done," a female voice said, startling me.

"So it is," a male voice agreed.

I shot up, my eyes wide –

Only to be assaulted by _everything_ at once.

Deep green trees with thick trunks teaming up to meet a night sky twinkling stars _bright_ moonlight look away flecks of rock and specks of dirt in brown soil undergrowth quivering from the flash of a fox's tail running away tree branches trembling at the startled flapping of bird wings and their panicked cries piercing my much too sensitive ears so much _too_ much –

A pounding.

A pulsing that my throat throbbed in time to.

A _need_.

I was on my feet, the bare pads of them digging into cool dirt and moss, only a slight reprieve from the fire in my throat. It cracked and ached. I needed something to soothe it. I was thirsty. Thirstier than I'd ever known. If I didn't drink something, I was going to _die_ –

Something slammed into me, wrapping my upper body in a grip stronger than iron. What the fuck?

I bucked against it, panicked, then startled back once a shadow dropped down from the trees overhead and landed in front of me. The figure of a female straightened up, her hair a vibrant and wild orange against the green and dark. Her beautiful pale face was angular and her eyes were burgundy –

Her eyes were red, filled with the blood from my _mother_.

Murderer.

The rage coursing through me made something in my chest vibrate, and it created a terrible noise – deep, breathy, loud – that curled around my ears and into the air –

I stopped as soon as it scratched at my throat, and I realized with a start _I_ made that noise. I sounded like an animal, but not quite an animal, maybe like one of those carnivorous dinosaurs on _Jurassic Park_. How did I know about _Jurassic Park_ , but I didn't know where I was? Or who _she_ was, but somehow knew it was the blood of my mother in her red, red eyes.

"Beautiful," the female cooed, reaching out with a slender white hand to touch me.

Another growl bubbled up from me, and I didn't care about the pain it brought my throat. I snapped at her, my teeth _clacking_ loudly at the effort. She barely pulled her hand away in time, a look of shock and disgust making her brows furrow. I lunged for her –

Only for the restraints around me to pull me back.

"You mustn't agitate her," a male voice rumbled at my back. Too fucking serene for the circumstances. My growl deepened. "You remember your first moments awake."

The female narrowed her eyes. "Then just have her fucking _breathe_ so we can get her first hunt over with."

Breathe?

I sucked in a sharp breath and bridled.

The air was… strange.

It had _taste_.

I inhaled the earthiness of the soil beneath us, the pine of trees around us, a headiness of animals, the tang of gasoline, harshness of smoke –

But it was a succulent tang powdered the back of my throat that overtook any other scent. I went still. My throat seemed to split apart at the taste, forcing a breathy cry of need out of me. That was what I wanted. What I _needed_.

A sigh came from behind me. "Now you've done it."

I charged for it, but only stumbled forward a few steps before I was reined in by the shackles around me. I whined.

"It's as good a time as any," the woman said.

How could they be so calm? I was _dying_! I needed to follow that smell, I needed to get to so I could stop being in pain!

"Perhaps so," the male replied. A cold hand suddenly gripped my throat and tilted my head back. Um hell no what the hell was going on –

"Listen, Blaire," the male hissed in my ear, forcing me still. _Blaire_. That was my name. It meant battlefield. I died on a battlefield. "Are you thirsty?"

What kind of question was that? I struggled against him, sucking in another breath laden with that beautiful smell. It set my throat on fire. No! It couldn't be on fire! Not again! No more burning! A keening noise curled into the air, high pitched and needy.

"Of course, sweet girl, of course," the male said. He didn't let go. "But I need you to listen to me first, then you can drink. Can you do that?"

Another growl ripped from me, blistering my throat. _What_?

"Breathe again, Blaire."

He had to be insane, or worse, if I did what he said _I'd_ go insane. I pushed forward to break out of what had to be his hold.

His hand tightened, bowing my neck back even further, sending sharp pain through it. I gasped, and the scent forced its way to the back of my throat, beautifully painful. I whimpered and writhed against the male's hold, but when he didn't let go, the sound turned into a snarl.

"That's it," the male murmured. "Show me that monster."

Then the pressure was gone. I was free.

I shot into the woods, toward the scent. Branches and ferns and rocks trembled in my wake.

I followed the sound of the pounding, chased the scent as it grew thicker in my lungs. I was breathless, manic, exhausted, unstable, aching, _unleashed_ –

The trees ahead of me thinned and ended at the edge of a cliff. I skidded to a stop, my feet sinking into the ground. I grappled onto the trunk of a nearby tree to stop me quicker –

Only to yank out a massive chunk of it. I stared at it in my hands, so startled my feet simply stopped moving and I fell down.

 _Eeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrk!_ the tree behind me groaned.

I looked up, my eyes wide, as it tipped back and fell, crashing into other trees in a trembling mess of branches and leaves. The sound was deafening.

"What was that?" someone asked.

When I breathed in, I tasted sap and pine.

And that _delicious_ savory smell.

That was the most important thing right now.

I dropped the chunk of wood still in my hand and raced to the cliff, coming to a more seamless stop so I could peer over the edge. I could hear the crackling of a campfire, see its brightness, as if I were standing right in front of it and it wasn't yards away. A group of five people were seated around it, laughing and smiling. It felt like they were laughing at _me_. How could they be so happy when I was in so much pain?

I breathed again, the smoke irritating my raw throat and shredding it apart with the painfully wonderful smell. I needed it.

I planted my feet in the earth and tensed.

They wouldn't escape _me_.

I flung myself forward, stumbling and sprinting down the steep side of the cliff. I crossed the length of the field between myself and the campers in seconds. I reached out and touched one of their downy soft vests.

It was over then.

Red filled my vision. That smell filled my nostrils, my throat, my every pore.

I unraveled.

I clawed through fabric, skin, muscle, and bone, delighted in warmth running down my skin. Their _screams_ filling my ears did nothing to stop the madness. I needed this. I took it.

Then the field went quiet, except for the sounds of the deep dregs I would take. Warmth rushed down my throat, fulfilling me like nothing ever had before. The world was brighter with every swallowed mouthful, more stunning, more…

Horrifying.

I was surrounded by a massacre.

Blood, chunks of… bodies, entrails littered the earth or were caught in the limbs of trees nearby. My hands were covered in slick blood, my clothes were soaked with it, and the memories of who I'd been before and what brought me _here_ snapped into place. They were bleary, but they were there.

I would never forget them.

I screamed.

 **V**

* * *

Blaire will return in a special first look at RAVAGE's sequel, SAVAGE, next Tuesday.

 **QUICK ANNOUNCEMENT**

If you guys enjoy this story and my writing, I recently set up a ko-fi account (essentially an online tip jar) so you guys have the option to support me and the continued creation of RAVAGE. Please consider donating if you have extra change and want to help your local Texas Ranger out. I use this account to post excerpts of upcoming chapters, as well as to upload pictures of my favorite comments. So you should check it out just to see if your comment happens to be up there.

The link is ko-fi dot com slash twitchwalkertexasranger


	43. SAVAGE: A SPECIAL LOOK

_The following content is an exclusive first look at SAVAGE, the sequel to RAVAGE._

 **TRIGGER WARNINGS**

 _graphic descriptions of gore/violence_

 _torture_

* * *

 **PREFACE**

 _I RAN TO MEET THE_ end.

It was different than before, though. It didn't matter if anyone else thought otherwise. _I_ knew it was different. That was enough.

The first time I met the end, it was mine. This time, someone else was going to end. This time, I would have it done by my hands, and no one else's.

The trees zipped past me and the wind whipped through my ears and tangled my hair, but I wasn't moving fast enough. I could feel them at my heels, dying to close in. Ready to make the kill. They could try. I was so much faster than I'd ever been before. I would outrun them all.

My focus was on the flame ahead of me, the fire that burned at me every hour.

This had been months in the making – weeks, days, hours, minutes, seconds. Every breath had been for this.

I was finally closing in.

I was so close.

And then I would finally be free.

 **V**

* * *

 **1\. MONSTER**

 _I SUCKED IN BREATH AFTER_ shuttering breath, crying without exactly crying. There were no tears dripping down my face, no stuffy nose, no way to prove I was sobbing other than my disturbed gasping. There was no release in it, no relief, but I couldn't stop.

In a clearing, surrounded by the blood and gore of people – fucking _people_! I was forced to look at their remains with unnaturally powerful eyes. A fire, dying from the wind I'd caused in my flurry of thirst and rage, illuminated the scene in a dull orange light. My eyes could pick up everything else lost to the embers. There was blood everywhere; soaking into the grass, plastering my clothes (leggings, a t-shirt, no shoes?), slicking along my skin, staining the fabric of torn tents and what had once been _their_ clothes. Body parts had been tossed; mangled organs trailed at my feet, limbs were tossed haphazardly and an arm hung off the crook of its elbow from a tree branch overhead, there was a finger to my left, and one of their heads was angled toward me, revealing an expression twisted in agony and horror. They'd been in so much pain. I _murdered_ them! – I finally remembered who I was and how I got here. It left me broken. Anguished.

Lives had been lost. Stolen. More lives than the ones taken by me. My uncle had been murdered as a test to see how I would react to his death, and the discovery of monsters that existed outside of horror books and movies. Then it was my mother, murdered as a consequence for changing the rules of a game I never wanted to play. She didn't even know _why_ she died, because I was trying so hard to protect her from the truth.

Then I was killed.

All because of the things that had been hunting me. They were the ones capable of such destruction, terror, and violence.

I was one of them now.

And I'd done what they had done to me.

The worst part was I wasn't even _aware_ of what I was doing until it was too late.

The _worst_ part was the guilt, the horror, the sadness all swirled and clamored in my head – _this is wrong, this is wrong, what are you doing, this is so wrong, stop it!_ – but they were forced into the back of my thoughts. I was caged in my own body, begging myself to stop, but I couldn't. I was so _fucking_ thirsty. Doing this was the only thing that saved me.

But my throat still burned so raw. It was white hot, like the fire that'd been coursing through my veins when I was bitten –

It was done. My adversary, my stalker, my hunter, had won.

I lost everything.

All I wanted to do was drink now.

I dragged my tongue flat against my palms, lapping up the blood that still dribbled between the lines of my palms, equal parts disgusted and relieved by it. There was no control over this. My body moved on its own, instinct commanding my movements, shoving the rational part of me into a corner to belatedly process every action made.

"Is she crying?" a female voice carried through the forest, stopping me short. I whipped around.

A female slipped out of the trees, her wild hair as orange as the dying embers of the fire I'd just destroyed. I could see every spark of the fire dance in her crimson eyes as they widened with interest. "Oh my," she breathed.

Victoria.

My mother's murderer.

I could hear it now, the way my mother died. The sounds were muddled, muted, but I remembered them well enough. Her car tires squealing, her phone clattering, a _crash_ , a scream, a _crack_ –

I bared my teeth and _snarled_ at Victoria. The sound ripped from my throat and snapped in the air like a whip, vibrating within my chest in a deep, satisfying way that revealed the true scope of my rage. She was going to die. Now.

I threw myself at her –

And then I was thrown to the ground, hard. The earth crumbled around my ears as it gave way under me. Then _he_ stood over me. Stalker, hunter, murderer –

Creator.

James grinned at me, exposing teeth so white they seemed to glow in the darkness. Another snarl boiled in my throat as I surged upward, slamming my fist into his face –

 _CRASH!_

The sound was like rocks colliding, making my ears ring, but I relished in watching James stumble – actually _stumble_ – to the side a few steps, before a set of steel arms locked around my own. I thrashed against them, roared and screamed, reared back to try and bite Victoria at her neck. James's responding laugh echoed in my head, my mind void of everything but hatred. I would kill them both for what they took –

"Do something James," Victoria spat through her teeth. "She's strong!"

James straightened up, massaging his jaw. Then he tugged it sharply – _crack!_ – before he smiled casually. "Then rip her arm off," he said.

What?

Victoria pushed me down, forcing me to my knees. Her hands were quick, wrapping themselves around my shoulders before I could get away from her, _pulling_ at my left arm –

It tore. It burned. Everything slowed down.

I screeched at the pain, tried to wrench myself out from Victoria's hold, but it only increased the pulling. My arm was on fire as if it alone was going through the transformation I only woke up from only half an hour ago. Thirty-three minutes ago. In spite of all of this, I was keeping an excellent track of time. I stared down at my wrist in horror as it extended too far away from me –

"Hold," James said.

Victoria stopped. But it didn't stop the pain. It didn't stop me from screaming.

James crouched in front of me, his serene smile still in place as I choked on more sobs. He reached out and cupped my face in his hand. "She turned out well, didn't she?" James asked, his brighter red gaze flitting from my face to somewhere over my head, no doubt to Victoria.

"She needs to be controlled," she said. "The mess she just made will lead him straight to us."

Him?

"You only get your first hunt once," James reasoned idly. Then his smile faltered. "But of course you're right. Forgive me, but she promised me a monster. I wanted to see how well she would deliver."

I remembered that promise. It was bleary, but it was still one of my sharper memories. James holding me by my hair while I shoved a gun into his throat and fired –

Then he looked at me. I growled through my crying. Choked and gurgled as the sound was, I would still let him know my fury. He only smiled again. "And deliver you most certainly did. You're an artist, the way you painted this campsite in blood. Were you trying to impress me? If so, it worked."

It would be the last time I'd impress him, because it would be the last time I would touch a person like that. God, I _killed_ them!

He cocked his head to the side. "Having regrets? You shouldn't. Look at what we made." He grabbed my chin, forcing my head around to look at the campsite. "Look at what we created – _together_."

Blood staling in the air, soaking into the earth, parts of bodies thrown in chaos and abstraction.

What we made was death.

When I breathed it in, my throat burned. I wasn't even satisfied.

How many more would it take until I was?

 **V**

* * *

SAVAGE will go live on on Tuesday, July 2nd, and update every Tuesday/Wednesday hereafter (if life doesn't get in the way, that is). I'm uploading this installment on a Monday because future Mr. TwitchWalkerTexasRanger's birthday is on that Tuesday!

SAVAGE will be rated "M" for graphic descriptions of violence and gore, strong language, and sexual situations.

 **QUCK** **ANNOUNCEMENT:**

If you guys enjoy this story and my writing, I recently set up a ko-fi account (essentially an online tip jar) so you guys have the option to support me and the continued creation of RAVAGE. Please consider donating if you have extra change and want to help your local Texas Ranger out. I use this account to post excerpts of upcoming chapters, as well as to upload pictures of my favorite comments. So you should check it out just to see if your comment happens to be up there.

The link is ko-fi dot com slash twitchwalkertexasranger


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